EY Academy has successfully concluded its 2025 Corporate Reporting Insights Roadshow; a landmark regional program that brought together around 950 CFOs, finance directors, controllers and industry specialists across eight cities in six Middle Eastern countries.
Designed at a pivotal moment for global reporting, the roadshow addressed the sweeping transformation driven by IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) 18, IFRS 19, and other amendments and updates issued by the International Accounting Standards Board between January 2024 and June 2025. The series delivered practical, region-specific guidance to help organizations prepare for the most significant overhaul in financial reporting in more than a decade.
Hosted across Dubai, Riyadh, Jeddah, Al-Khobar, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait, the sessions attracted professionals from banking, asset management, government, manufacturing, and retail & consumer goods, reflecting the cross-sector urgency to strengthen reporting foundations ahead of upcoming implementation deadlines.
“Finance leaders across the Middle East are navigating one of the most consequential shifts in IFRS requirements in recent times. The strong participation throughout the roadshow reflects a shared recognition: reporting excellence is now a strategic capability. These sessions created space not only to understand the changes, but to interpret them and prepare organisations to apply them with confidence,” said Fazeela Gopalani, EY MENA Academy Leader.
Participants engaged in deep-dive discussions on the practical and strategic implications of:
- IFRS 18’s new structure for performance reporting, including mandatory subtotals, profit categories and enhanced disclosure logic.
- Materiality, aggregation and disaggregation requirements, reinforcing transparency and comparability.
- IFRS 15 and IFRS 9 real-world complexities, from variable consideration and financing components to revenue timing and classification issues.
- IASB updates across leases, supplier finance arrangements and covenant disclosures: topics gaining relevance as regional capital markets mature.
- Interpretation challenges surfaced in global practice, explored through IFRS 18 Q&A scenarios on financial instruments, leasing, contingent consideration and performance measures.
The roadshow also emphasized the broader strategic effects of IFRS reform, from the potential revision of KPIs and remuneration metrics under IFRS 18, to the operational processes required for more granular disclosure, to the growing expectations of investors and regulators across the region.
The program was led by Lakatos László Péter, Associate Senior Trainer at EY Poland and IFRS specialist, who guided participants through scenario-based case studies, decision-tree logic, and practical implementation questions aligned with the latest IASB thinking.
Marco AbouZahr, EY MENA Financial Accounting Advisory Services Leader, added: “High-quality corporate reporting underpins trust, investment and long-term economic growth. The momentum we saw across the roadshow reinforces the Middle East’s commitment to elevating reporting standards and aligning with global best practice. As economies diversify and capital markets expand, this capability will be crucial.”
The Corporate Reporting Insights Roadshow is part of EY Academy’s broader mission to accelerate talent development and support finance functions across the region as they prepare for IFRS 18 and IFRS 19 implementation from 2027. Building on this success, EY Academy will expand its technical and leadership programs throughout 2026, offering tailored in-house workshops, industry-focused IFRS labs and certification pathways.
