The Association s high-level visit to Hong Kong in April 2018

Transcription

1 The Association s high-level visit to Hong Kong in April 2018 In April 2018, Kimberly N Ellison-Taylor, Chairman, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants & Immediate Past Chairman, the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), Mr David Stanford, Vice-Chairman, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants & President, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), Barry C Melancon, CEO, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants & President & CEO, AICPA, Andrew Harding, Chief Executive, Management Accounting PU, Association of International Certified Professional Accountants, visited Hong Kong. They were accompanied by Vicky Li, Regional Vice President, North Asia and Paulus Chau, Associate Director, HK & Emerging Markets, for various events and activities to promote the Association to stakeholders such as government, regulators, employers, Big4 and universities. During that week, the Hong Kong annual dinner was successfully held with both CIMA and AICPA members in attendance. The Association held discussions with stakeholders on various topics including the Future of Finance, the future role of finance and accounting professionals and the importance of updated knowledge and skills. To benefit the profession and the industry, the Association s professional development training courses could play an important role. Following the visits to the various stakeholders, Barry Melancon, CEO of the Association said, In this new economy and AI era, we are very keen to work with the stakeholders to bring our knowledge to the profession in this region. Hong Kong is at the center of the One-belt-one-road region, and it is also part of the Big Bay Area. We will work with the financial and accounting profession here to participate in these projects and take advantage of Hong Kong s position as an international finance center. Andrew Harding, CEO, Management Accounting, the Association, said, The Association is very glad to receive very positive feedback and strong support from the different stakeholders in the financial and accounting sector in Hong Kong. We are confident in working with them to create more value for our members in this fast changing world. Government Visit The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) has awarded Mr. Paul Chan, Mo-po, GBM, GBS, MH, JP, Financial Secretary, an Honorary Fellowship of CIMA. David Stanford, FCMA, CGMA, President of CIMA, presented the honour to Mr. Chan at a special event held at the Central Government Offices on 19 April.

2 Mr. Paul Chan, Mo-po, GBM, GBS, MH, JP, Financial Secretary, was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of CIMA. The Association s team included Kimberly N Ellison-Taylor, Barry Melancon, Andrew Harding, William Chen, Chairman, CIMA Hong Kong Committee, Vicky Li and Paulus Chau also attended this meeting to witness the award presentation at the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong. Mr. Stanford commented: The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants is proud to honour Mr. Paul Chan he has achieved a great amount in both his professional career and now in the government service. As a former President of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants, he has played a significant role in helping to elevate the accounting profession in East Asia. Speaking at the ceremony Mr. Chan said: Being recognised and awarded this Honorary Fellowship is a great privilege. Throughout my career, I have never under-estimated the importance of education, ethics and professional standards. The Chartered Institute of Management Accountants is undertaking great work on behalf of management accountants. This is being amplified through the partnership with the American Institute of CPAs in the form of the creation of the Association of International Certified Professional Accountants to drive these values forward with accountants around the world. During the meeting, various topics about Hong Kong, including the current Hong Kong economic environment, the development and strategy in AI, biotechnology, Fintech, smart city as well as the Listing Reform in Hong Kong were discussed. Mr. Chan emphasized that talent is very important so the government will lead to facilitate and promote to acquire more talents in Hong Kong. The Association had similar views on the importance of talent to the development of society. Our programme is also designed to meet these needs.

3 Annual Dinner Our annual dinner was held successfully on 18 April at Hotel Icon, Tsim Sha Tsui. Around 200 AICPA and CIMA members got together with key stakeholders from the government, regulatory bodies, employers, business and universities for this significant event. They are all excited about the future of the Association. During the dinner, newly qualified members received membership certificates from David Stanford, President of CIMA. Top students who gained the highest scores in the exam and CIMA training partners who encouraged staff to take the CGMA exam were also awarded with certificates. Kimberly and William Chen gave welcome speeches to the guests. Barry shared his views on the future of finance with the audience. Mr David Sun, BBS, JP Director of Audit, Audit Commission and Mr Charlix Wong, Director of Accounting Services, The Treasury, The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, also attended the dinner. Ms Kimberly N Ellison-Taylor and Mr David Stanford delivered speeches during the Hong Kong Annual Dinner Mr Barry Melancon delivered a presentation on Future on Finance while Mr William Chen, Chairman, CIMA Hong Kong Committee, kick started the event with his opening speech.

4 Toasting time Newly qualified members Right 2: Mr David Sun, BBS, JP Director of Audit, Audit Commission, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Grandball room of Hotel Icon, Hong Kong Photo with members left 3: Mr Charlix Wong, Director of Accounting Services, The Treasury, The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government

5 Cocktail time Group photo with North Asia staff team CFO Rising Summit Hong Kong The Association was the major sponsor of CFO Rising Summit Hong Kong. The theme of the summit was Grow, Protect and Transform your Organization. The role of the CFO has evolved significantly. CFOs are now expected to make strategic judgments on acquiring companies and critical decisions on the outsourcing of back office functions and transformative projects. The summit addressed all the challenges facing a modern CFO and the opportunities they have to lead their organizations. Barry was invited to deliver the topic of Future of Finance to around 80 finance professionals at the summit. Barry on the stage. Around 80 finance professional attended the summit.

6 The Association booth Entrance to the summit Securities and Futures Commission Mr Ashley Alder, JP, CEO of Securities and Futures Commission welcomed Mr Barry Melancon, CPA, CGMA, CEO, The Association, for his first official courtesy visit in Hong Kong during his North Asia trip. During the visit, they discussed the role of management accounting and how the CGMA competency framework and related knowledge could benefit the industry. Mr. Alder discussed about The Monitoring Group Consultation Paper on Strengthening the Governance and Oversight of the International Audit-related Standard-setting Boards in the Public Interest with the Association. The evolution of international standards for audit, assurance, ethics and education will be driven by the results of the consultation. The parties also shared views on Sustainability Reporting and Integrated Reporting. The objective of achieving a balance between company return versus Environment, Social and Governance responsibilities is critical to introduce Sustainability Reporting and Integrated Reporting. From left to right: Mr Mark Lam, Assistant Manager, International Affairs, SFC, Ms Christine Kung, Senior Director and Head of International Affairs, SFC, Mr Michael Duignan, Senior Director of Corporate Finance, SFC, Mr Ashley Alder, JP, Chief Executive Officer, SFC, Mr Barry Melancon (The Association), Ms Vicky Li (The Association), Mr Paulus Chau (The Association)

7 Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited Mr. John Killian, Group Chief Financial Officer, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited welcomed Barry during his courtesy visit to the Exchange. They shared views on integrated reporting and how such reporting will provide more relevant information to formulate business strategy and create value for companies, shareholders and other stakeholders. The topic of Hong Kong s Listing Reform and its objectives to bring in more new economy companies such as technology and biotechnology were also discussed. From left and right: Mr Paulus Chau (The Association), Ms Vicky Li (The Association), Mr Barry Melancon (The Association), Mr. John Killian, Group Chief Financial Officer, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, Mr William Chen, Chairman, CIMA Hong Kong Committee.

8 BT Global Services BT Global Services is one of our key global employers. The Association team arranged a morning session with BT Global Services Hong Kong. 20 BT Global Services finance colleagues in Hong Kong attended the session physically while over 100 finance staff dialed in to attend from Australia (Sydney & Melbourne), Singapore, Malaysia, India (New Delhi & Gurgaon), China (Dalian) and Japan offices. Barry shared his insights on the future role of accountants in the ever-changing business world with fast growing technology. It is expected that there will be future cooperation between BT Global Services and the Association in Hong Kong. 20 BT Global Services finance colleagues in Hong Kong attended the session physically while over 100 finance staff dialed in to attend from Australia (Sydney & Melbourne), Singapore, Malaysia, India (New Delhi & Gurgaon), China (Dalian) and Japan offices

9 Big 4s meeting Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers The Big 4s are our strategic partners in North Asia. Barry and Andrew had a high level meeting with Philip Tsai, Chairman of Deloitte China and 6 partners, accompanied by Vicky and Paulus. Philip said that Deloitte valued the relationship and cooperation with the Association. Views on the future of auditing and the successful collaboration on the TopCFO Program were exchanged. New business opportunities on bilingual programs and other projects to better support local business needs were discussed. A meeting with the China Consulting Leader of PricewaterhouseCoopers and the team was held in Hong Kong. The view on consulting services and role of finance was discussed. New business opportunities were explored. It was agreed that management accounting and the CGMA competency framework will be very useful for accounting professionals in this era. PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Association will continue their cooperation in China, and expand it to Hong Kong and other markets. From left to right: Mr Vincent Li, Audit & Assurance Leader, Southern Region, Deloitte China, Paulus Chau (The Association), Ms Viola You, Partner, Audit, Deloitte China, Ms Vicky Li (The Association), Mr Andrew Harding (The Association), Mr Philip Tsai, Chairman, Deloitte China, Mr Barry Melancon (The Association), Mr Richard George, Partner, Reputation and Risk Group, Deloitte China, Ms Cissy Chiu, Partner, Learning & Development National, Deloitte China, Mr Brian Gleason, Partner, Deloitte China, Mr Derek Broadley, Partner, Audit, Deloitte China Hong Kong Institute of CPAs Apart from the above meetings and visits, the team also had a meeting with HKICPA to update on recent developments in both organizations. The agreement for mutual examination paper exemption (MEPE) with HKICPA is currently under review. We will publish the updates once confirmed.