The standard setter has deferred the effective date for International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17 – Insurance Contracts – to annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022

This, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) said, was so that any amendments being explored would not disrupt its implementation.

“Together with the significant change that IFRS 17 will cause, this constitutes exceptional circumstances that justify the deferral,” the IASB said. Fourteen board members voted for the change.

IASB also chose to defer the expiry date for the temporary exemption to IFRS 9 in IFRS 4 by a year. All insurance entities must apply IFRS 9 for annual periods on or after 1 January 2022.

This more contentious deferral – which would mean some entities not applying the standard up to four years after all other entities – gained 13 votes.

IASB said, “Without the deferral there would be two sets of major accounting changes in a short period of time, resulting in significant cost and effort of the preparers of financial statements”.

Philippa Kelly, head of Financial Services at ICAEW, said, “Additional time will allow insurers and those working with insurers the time needed to ensure they have the technology required to effectively implement the standard available and in place.”

She said that insurance companies should make good use of the additional time to deliver on high quality implementation.

Alex Bertolotti, IFRS 17 leader at PwC said that some insurers have been lobbying for this for some time and others have been requesting clarification due to the costs of moving ahead.

He noted that the full impact of deferral “can only be fully assessed after reviewing potential changes to the standard which the IASB board will consider in December”.

“The additional time will help alleviate some risk from existing plans, however many companies still have a lot to do and cannot afford to press pause,” Bertolotti said.

“To stand still is to fall behind”, he added.

Francesco Nagari, global IFRS insurance leader at Deloitte, described the IFRS 17 deferral as a “parallel shift of the deferral in IFRS 9 mandatory adoption” that insurers will largely welcome.

A recent survey from the Big Four firm found that 90% of insurers were either “somewhat” or “very” confident at meeting the previous 2021 deadline, but there have still been recent calls to delay, he said.

“Substantial effort is already underway to implement the standards, with budgets in some instances expected to exceed €50m (£43.4m),” said Nagari.

While investors and regulators are eager for what IFRS 17 will bring, the additional time will allow for insurers to prepare, which Nagari said is a “reasonable compromise between the two stakeholder groups”.

The IASB said that the proposed deferral will be subject to public consultation, which is expected next year, and the board expects to discuss the merits of potential amendments during its December meeting.

The vast majority of insurance companies worldwide are not prepared for the incoming accounting standard IFRS 17, despite recognising the significant risks it poses to their business

Data from 240 insurance firms reveals that 92% have yet to put their solutions in place, and that 88% know they will need to invest in new processes to support disclosure requirements.

That is according to a new report by Aptitude Software, with chief technology officer, Martin Redington, warning IFRS 17 will be the “most significant change to insurance accounting that has ever taken place”.

“Time is of the essence. It is a massive project with significant risks, and there is not a one-size-fits-all solution, bespoke solutions are required,” he said.

“Insurers need to be selecting their vendors now and working on implementing IFRS 17 financial accounting solutions to avoid the skills shortage and ensure they comply in time.”

The report shows that 78% of insurance companies are still in the early research and impact analysis phase of implementing the accounting standard, which comes into effect at the start of 2021.

It identifies a wide range of challenges that insurers will need to overcome, with 84% of firms having cited having a disparate actuarial environment as being a constraint to delivering consistent calculations.

In addition, it was found that 39% of insurance companies expect to kick off their implementation projects in the second quarter of this year, suggesting a huge demand for expertise at the same time, and a potential skills shortage.

Ernst & Young estimates that smaller life insurers with less than $10bn (£7.4bn) of gross written premium will need a budget of $25m to comply with IFRS 17, while those with more than $25bn will need to spend approximately $150m.

“Insurance company profits are under duress as many sectors have become commoditised and many firms recognise the need to innovate their offerings and operations,” Redington continued.

“In a post-IFRS 17 world, it will be difficult for CFOs to service the many financial and regulatory requirements without an approach that centralises control of reporting and financial data.

“IFRS 17 is already proving to be the straw that broke the camel’s back, driving insurance CFOs to modernise their financial systems.”

Large City based Insurance Company require a Senior UK Reporting Accountant

Responsible for the timely and accurate production for the UK Legal Entities results whilst supervising and supporting team members assisting in delivering UK Technical Reporting

Key Responsibilities

• Responsible for supervising and assisting with technical US GAAP results for the syndicates, international & UK Hubs
• Assist with the review and clearance of management reporting deliverables
• Support external reporting team with analysis and explanation
• Support and assist with process improvements and documentation
• Implement and embed new controls
• Manage relationships with functions and within Finance
• Support and assist with implementation of key Group and Hub projects within UK Finance
• Supervision and support of team members assisting in delivering the UK management reporting

To be considered for this role you will be a qualified accountant with experience in Company and or Lloyd’s markets with up to date appreciation of the technical requirements of the role e.g. UK GAAP, US GAAP, IFRS

Strong communication and IT skills are important

This role will be supporting the Solvency II team in accounting policy and the completion of the implementation of Solvency II Pillar 3 for a major London based insurance business.

Working within a highly specialised Solvency II team to ensure the completion of the implementation of the Solvency II Pillar 3 (supervisory reporting and disclosure) regime across Lloyd’s syndicates.  This includes ensuring that the business meets its Pillar 3 reporting requirements as the insurance industry moves into ‘live’ Solvency II from 2016.

• Qualified Accountant
• Good understanding of insurance and Lloyd’s market financial and regulatory reporting, including Solvency II Pillar 3
• Good Understanding of Solvency II
• Good technical knowledge or UK GAAP/IFRS
• Knowledge /experience of Lloyd’s returns
• Advanced knowledge of Excel and Access

Recently qualified Chartered Accountants with insurance audit backgrounds required for one of the City’s top London market insurance groups comprising Lloyd’s syndicates and insurance company with global reach.

Development opportunities to work in either FP&A (Financial Planning and Analysis) or Financial Reporting (GAAP / IFRS).

Liaising across the business with underwriters, actuaries, key stakeholders and finance.

Looking for a strong communicator with insurance ACA / ICAS or ICAEW qualification.

Great opportunity for someone that wants responsibility and opportunity to join exciting company with clear career progression to manager level.

Group Tax Manager reporting to the Global Head of Finance, you will be working with other teams across finance and with outsourced service providers this role will be responsible for tax compliance for corporate tax, VAT and other indirect tax. The role will maintain transfer pricing policies and documentation and monitor developments in tax legislation to drive the group’s tax planning and tax risk management. The role will support the finance reporting team in calculating the tax provisions for key entities within the Client and work with the HR team on employment tax issues.

Corporate Tax
o Monitor developments in corporate tax legislation and advise management on the implications for the Client.
o Develop relationships with Clients HMRC tax contacts and communicate effectively to help manage our tax risk.
o Prepare the annual UK company tax returns.
o Calculate the required tax instalments and monitor the deadlines to ensure all taxes are paid on time.
o Complete Lloyd’s tax filings and work closely with the Lloyd’s tax team to ensure Client is compliant with all the latest developments.
o Prepare tax disclosures for the group and UK/Irish subsidiary accounts.
o Maintain the required transfer pricing documentation and advise the business on transfer pricing risks.
o Oversee outsourced service providers to ensure effective tax compliance across the European offices of the Client.

VAT
o Prepare the quarterly UK VAT returns.
o Support the development of appropriate processes to ensure the effectiveness of the VAT reporting.
o Complete all the controls over the VAT reporting processes.
o Monitor developments in VAT legislation and advise on the implications to Client

Other taxes
o Support the definition of business processes to ensure other taxes are paid as required.
o Support talent management with queries as they arise in relation to employment tax working with outsourced service providers.
o Provide effective oversight of all group tax activities and monitor tax compliance in non-European locations to ensure appropriate standards are maintained.
o Support the business with tax advice and the provision of tax residence certificates.

General
o Recommend tax strategy opportunities for enhancing Clients tax efficiency and maintaining efficient compliance practices.
o Oversee and enhance the company’s tax compliance and underlying business processes to maintain appropriate controls for tax reporting.
o Prepare the annual SAO notifications and certifications.
o Support the Head of Global Finance and the Head of Global Financial Reporting on other tax requirements as required.

Education and Qualifications
o University degree in any discipline
o Professional tax qualification

Skills and Abilities
o Understanding of UK tax reporting and compliance
o Experience of insurance company tax issues.
o Exposure to a range of tax
o Highly technical in accountancy skills, especially UK GAAP and IFRS
o General commercial and financial knowledge
o Insurance and Lloyd’s specific knowledge preferable
o Strong analytical skills with attention to detail
o Advanced excel skills
o Able to communicate effectively with others, both verbally and in writing
o Able to work on own initiative
o Strong team working skills
o The ability to manage time, meet deadlines and prioritise

Knowledge and Experience
o Proven post qualification experience, ideally gained within the Insurance sector
o Experience of operating tax compliance activities

Job Summary:
To assist in the production of SII reporting to both Lloyd’s and the CBI for managed syndicates and group companies. To help with the implementation and testing of solvency II related systems and reports.

Key Responsibilities:

Project
* Contribute to the identification and design of processes to meet the QRT reporting requirements as efficiently as possible.
* Assist in the definition and documentation of the data mapping between the existing finance systems and solvency II systems.
* Assist in the documentation of the processes and controls to ensure the methodologies can be communicated and explained across the finance team.
* Support the execution of the end user testing of solvency II reporting systems.

Reporting
* Production of pillar 3 reports for all entities required to report
* Preparation of standard formula capital reports as required
* Execution of the designed controls over the reporting process

Other
* Support the Head of Global Financial Reporting on other finance reporting requirements/projects as required.

Education and Qualifications
* Graduate equivalent education and/or qualifications
* Professional accountancy qualification, preference for ACA/ACCA

Skills and Abilities
* Understanding of Solvency II reporting requirements
* Strong technical accountancy skills, especially UK GAAP and IFRS
* Insurance and Lloyd’s specific knowledge preferable
* Strong analytical skills with attention to detail
* Advanced excel skills
* Able to communicate effectively with others, both verbally and in writing
* Able to work on own initiative
* Strong team working
* The ability to manage time, meet deadlines and prioritise

Knowledge and Experience
* Proven experience in financial services, ideally gained in the Insurance sector
* Experience of Financial Reporting
* Experience of designing processes and managing controls

FP&A accountant required by market leading City based insurance company.

To support the effective delivery of the finance planning and analysis team’s objectives including production of GAAP annual and five year plan, board reporting, monthly MI and results analysis
Key Responsibilities
* Production of excel based annual and five year GAAP plan – to include P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash flow and Capital (Syndicate, Group, IFRS and US GAAP basis)
* Production of quarterly forecasts and variance analysis/commentary with actuals (Syndicate, Group, IFRS and US GAAP basis)
* Coordination of annual business plan cycle including production of Syndicate Business Forecast (SBF)
* Monthly results analysis and commentary
* Monthly premium production reporting/analysis and distribution
* Production of all assigned board, committee, head office and regulatory reports with appropriate commentary and analysis
* Provide support to the actuarial and underwriting teams during the quarterly reserving process
* Pro-actively seek to understand informational needs of key stakeholders
* Play leading role in development of processes and initiatives including finance related projects
* Maintain all accounting records accurately and efficiently
* Finance representative to assigned governance groups
* Comply with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements and ensure, at a level appropriate to the position, that appropriate measures are in place to ensure this compliance
* May perform additional duties as assigned.

Education & Experience
* Qualified accountant
* Insurance industry experience