Governments and regulators should pick up the pace of the global accounting convergence, according to leading accountants from around the world.

Sixty leaders of the accountancy profession have called on governments to step up their convergence initiatives and establish timetables for the adoption of international standards.

The call was made at a conference organised by the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) in London last week, where President Robert Bunting encouraged world governments to push for global standards.

'It is critical that national standard-setting bodies establish roadmaps to move toward adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and international standards on auditing,' he said.

According to IFAC, participants at the conference agreed that the public interest would best be served by a single set of high-quality, principles-based financial reporting and auditing standards for listed and public interest entities.

On another front, the group found the needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) needed to be considered in the development of global standards, as well as in any re-regulation.

Read the full IFAC statement: IFAC G20 Accountancy Summit Issues Renewed Mandate for Adoption of Global Standards