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IFRS 9 Financial Instruments was issued by the IASB in July 2014 and is effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2018. For equity instruments, other than those held for trading and contingent consideration recognised in a business combination, the IASB has introduced an irrevocable option at inception on an instrument-by-instrument basis that permits those instruments to be accounted for at fair value through other comprehensive income ('FVOCI'), with no impairment losses recognised in profit or loss and no reclassification in profit or loss of gains or losses upon derecognition.
In the Basis for Conclusions on IFRS 9, the IASB notes that one of the primary reasons for not allowing recycling is that it would create the need to assess these equity instruments for impairment. The IASB also noted that the application of impairment requirements in IAS 39 was very subjective.
In its Endorsement Advice to the European Commission ('EC') on IFRS 9, EFRAG noted that the prohibition of recycling may be considered as limiting the relevance of the information, since profit or loss is the main indicator of performance, and could affect in particular long-term investors, that is entities that hold long-term investment portfolios. During the endorsement of IFRS for use in Europe, the EC and the European Parliament decided to monitor its impact on long-term investors.
EFRAG has recently received a request for advice from the EC in relation to the accounting requirements of investments in equity instruments under IFRS 9 Financial Instruments, and whether these requirements could affect long-term investing. In the first phase of the project, EFRAG has been asked to collect financial information on the existing investments in equity instruments.
EFRAG asks to complete this survey by 30 September 2017.