The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation announced the formation of the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) in November 2021. Currently, the ISSB is developing standards that will result in a high-quality, comprehensive global baseline of sustainability disclosures focused on the needs of investors and financial markets.

On June 26th, 2023, IFRS announced that the ISSB issued its inaugural standards leading the way to a new era of global sustainability-related disclosures in capital markets. The purpose of these Standards is to improve trust and confidence in company disclosures about sustainability, which is required to inform investment decisions. Additionally, for the first time, these Standards are creating a common language for disclosing the effect of climate-related risks and opportunities for companies.

The inaugural standards correspond to IFRS S1 and IFRS S2. While IFRS S1 establishes disclosure requirements to enable companies to communicate sustainability-related risks and opportunities to investors, IFRS S2 provides specific climate-related disclosures.