FSB convenes roundtable on audit quality amid changing audit industry
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) recently held a roundtable to examine the financial stability implications of structural change in the global audit industry, from shifting firm ownership to the rapid uptake of new technologies.
Hosted by the Bank of Spain in Madrid and chaired by Deputy Governor Soledad Núñez, the meeting brought together FSB member authorities, audit oversight bodies, standard-setters, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the six largest global audit networks and others. A central thread was the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) in external audits, which is driving heavy investment and, some of which, in turn, is reshaping how audit firms are owned and financed. Participants weighed what all this means for audit quality going forward.
Now, you will not be surprised to hear where we land on this. As AI starts to take on more of the analytical heavy lifting, the question of what the machines are working on is growing in importance. An audit conclusion is only as defensible as the data behind it, so algorithms operating on ‘black box’ principles make conclusions difficult to explain. Structured, traceable reporting is what lets a firm, or a regulator, follow a number back to its source. Time and time again, we see that the answer to a new problem remains good, well-tagged data.
Read more about the roundtable here.
