IFRS Essentials

IFRS 9 FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS AND IAS 39 FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS: RECOGNITION AND MEASUREMENT

1 INTRODUCTION

IAS 39 sets out the requirements for recognizing and measuring financial assets and financial liabilities. However, the IASB is currently developing a new standard (IFRS 9) that will ultimately replace IAS 39 in its entirety. The IASB divided that project to replace IAS 39 into three main phases (IFRS 9.IN1 and 9.IN5–9.IN6):

• Classification and measurement of financial assets and financial liabilities
• Impairment methodology
• Hedge accounting

As the IASB completes each phase, the relevant portions of IAS 39 will be deleted and new chapters will be created in IFRS 9 that replace the requirements in IAS 39.

In November 2009, the Board issued the chapters of IFRS 9 that relate to the classification and measurement of financial assets. In October 2010, the IASB added the requirements to IFRS 9 for classifying and measuring financial liabilities. At the same time, the requirements in IAS 39 related to the derecognition of financial assets and financial liabilities were carried forward unchanged to IFRS 9 (IFRS 9.IN7–IN8). By amending IFRS 9 in October 2010, the Board completed the first main phase of its project to replace IAS 39. However, currently the IASB intends to make limited modifications to the already existing rules of IFRS 9.

IFRS 9 (2010) has to be applied for annual periods beginning on or after Jan 01, 2015. However earlier application is permitted (IFRS 9.7.1.1). In ...