Geneva has missed out on hosting the International Sustainability Standards Board, but it could still take on other support functions.
The new headquarters of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) will go to Frankfurt according to a statement by the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Wednesday.
IFRS took the decision during the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow «after a thorough process that also involved discussions with those bidding to host,» a spokeswoman told finews.com.
Geneva was among London, Beijing, Tokyo and Frankfurt, as well as several cities in Canada to place a bid to host the headquarters of the new sustainability hub. Its loss is a setback to Switzerland's efforts to establish itself as a global leader for sustainable finance.
Multi-Location Model
Frankfurt will host the board and its chair, while Montreal will be responsible for strengthening cooperation among regional stakeholders. The hubs will get to work early 2022.
«It’s important to highlight that ISSB will have global footprint through a multi-location model,» the spokeswoman said. The other offices around the world, will therefore also have responsibilities.
Proposals for offices from Beijing and Tokyo to finalize the new board’s footprint in the Asia Oceania region are still ongoing.
Uniform Sustainability
«To properly assess related opportunities and risks, investors require high-quality, transparent and globally comparable sustainability disclosures that are compatible with the financial statements,» Erkki Liikanen, Chair of the IFRS Foundation Trustees, says in the statement.
The IFRS creates enforceable and globally recognized accounting standards. With the establishment of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), it has acknowledged the growing importance of uniform sustainability reporting by companies.
