IN an effort to ease the challenges of converting from the accounting standards currently applied in Saudi Arabia, KPMG Saudi Arabia has scheduled yet another seminar on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The first seminar will be in Arabic and will be held on today (Monday) at Hyatt Regency Riyadh Olaya Hotel, followed on Tuesday by a seminar in English language to be held at the same venue.

“Following the success of our earlier seminars, this seminar comes as part of KPMG's ongoing efforts to support the private sector in the Kingdom in general, and SMEs in particular,” said Khalil Al-Sedais, Managing Partner, KPMG Riyadh Office. “We believe that companies should view the changes in the accounting standards as far more than an accounting exercise. It is therefore our intention to help them upgrade their operations to align to international standards in a way that helps them develop and sustain their business, by preparing their systems and programs, relooking at contracts and carrying out training before the accounting changes take place.”

The seminar will deep dive into key topics such as property, plant and equipment, intangible assets other than goodwill, leases, investment property, revenues, financial instruments and employee benefits. In the seminar, IFRS for SMEs will also be compared to generally accepted accounting standards as issued by SOCPA.

The adoption of IFRS is an unavoidable aspect of Saudi Arabia’s desire to achieve compatibility with the global system that is in use. All private sector companies are obliged to begin preparation for the changes in policies and procedures. This will facilitate comparison of financial performances of similar enterprises and ensure a continued economic openness of the Kingdom and dual-listings in financial markets. It will also serve to support mergers and acquisitions and expand the foreign investment base in the Kingdom.

The financial reporting under IFRS began in early 2017 with those companies that are listed on Tadawul. IFRS for SMEs would have to be adopted by the rest of the companies in the Kingdom in 2018. The transition to IFRS for SMEs in the Kingdom aims to improve the level of transparency and disclosure in financial statements and ensuring their validity. — SG