Businesses Get Insight on Harnessing Business Value from Digital Business Reporting

Singapore, 26 September 2013 – The Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (“ISCA”) teamed up with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (“ACRA”) to jointly organise a training seminar yesterday for companies on how they could tap on XBRL[1] enabled business data to gain business insights and enhance their decision making process.

The seminar, entitled “Unlock the Value of Business Data – Revised XBRL Filing Requirements”, was attended by over 500 participants. The seminar is part of a series of training seminars ACRA is organising with professional bodies to get companies prepared for upcoming new filing requirements for financial statements. From 22 October 2013, Singapore incorporated companies (unless exempted) will be required to file a full set of financial statements in XBRL based on revised filing requirements. They will also file their financial statements through ACRA’s new one-stop financials filing portal, BizFin^x. At the same time, a new preparatory tool is also made available for companies in preparing their financial statements in XBRL.

The use of full XBRL in filing financials allows for greater transparency and consistency in the information extracted from financial reports. With XBRL, corporate financial information is readily available for use by consumers of financial information as opposed to the current PDF enabling an effective access and analysis of financial data. Financial ratios and industry trend analyses are useful information that could be computed efficiently using XBRL enabled data. The heightened comparability of financial information allows companies to not only measure themselves against competitors, but to also discern industry trends and achieve greater productivity due to a cutback in time needed to re-key data amongst other benefits.

The participants benefitted from the sharing sessions on the revised XBRL filing criteria as well as how they could potentially tap on the quality data derived, as a result of filing in XBRL, to gain competitive business insights. Live demonstrations on key BizFin^x features were also conducted. This include ACRA’s free one time usage of data analysis via the BizFin^x portal for companies each time they file their financial statements in XBRL.

“This XBRL Seminar is really useful because it delves into the technical details and the new filing requirements. It also helps that the seminar shared what to look out for and how to go about using the BizFin^x platform to file financial statements going forward,” Ms Chia Hui Ping, Accountant (Group Accounts), Singapore Airlines.

“The seminar is useful as it creates awareness of the new functions available in BizFin^x. The BizFin^x platform came across as more user-friendly and efficient as there is a reduction in the number of taxonomy we have to type in ourselves unlike in the past where it was done manually.” Mr Lee Yen Guan, Accounting Manger, Seadrill Management

“As the national accountancy body, ISCA is pleased to be able to partner ACRA in organising this timely seminar on the move towards full digital financial reporting in Singapore. An increasingly challenging economic climate, coupled with fast-changing customer trends, has created an intensely competitive environment where constant innovation and quick response to shifting needs are crucial to survival.

XBRL enabled data can provide data-based insights that will allow businesses to gain a competitive edge through benchmarking against their competitors and also understand industry trends. We are heartened by the strong turnout for the event as it shows that businesses are serious about getting on board with the relevant and necessary changes to the filing requirements and are keen to grasp how to utilise the BizFin^x system,” says Mr Lee Fook Chiew, Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants.

On the benefits of digital business reporting, Mr Kenneth Yap, Chief Executive, ACRA noted that “Accountants are well positioned to help companies make the most of this shift towards full XBRL financial reporting. The potential benefits are immense, as companies will be able to analyse and benchmark financial performance in relation to other market players, and integrate the process of reporting and auditing data within the organisation”.

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For media enquiries, contact:

Betsy Tan, Communications Manager

Tel: 6597 5608 / 9641 6920. Email: betsy.tan@isca.org.sg

Note to Editors:

About the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants

Formerly the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Singapore, the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (“ISCA”) is the national accountancy body of Singapore. Working with government and industry to develop the accounting profession, ISCA’s vision is to be a globally recognised professional accountancy body, bringing value to our members, the profession and wider community.

Possessing a Global Mindset, with Asian Insights, ISCA contributes to Singapore’s goal to be a global accountancy hub, by promoting and advocating for the interests of our members and the profession.

Established in 1963, ISCA shapes the accountancy landscape through its continual involvement in the profession’s development. Working in partnership with diverse stakeholders, including government agencies, global accounting organisations, professional bodies, employers, educators, and the public, we are dedicated to empowering our members to achieve their aspirations.   

ISCA is a Designated Entity to confer the Chartered Accountant of Singapore – CA (Singapore) – designation, a prestigious title that is expected to come with global recognition and international portability. As the Administrator of the Singapore Qualification Programme (Singapore QP), ISCA aims to raise the profile of this post-university professional accountancy qualification programme, helping it to attain international recognition and promoting it as the educational pathway of choice for professional accountants.

There are currently over 27,000 ISCA members making their stride in businesses across industries in Singapore and around the world.

For more information, please visit www.isca.org.sg