Samenvatting

Over the past year, the governance of supplier finance has risen even higher up the agenda for regulators, rating agencies, auditors, and corporates as its perceived role in the high-profile collapse of several corporates comes under scrutiny. The topic of disclosure has become one of more heated debate as global standard setters have responded to calls for more transparency with fast-track upgrades of existing rules. To gain a deeper understanding of how much progress corporates and auditors are making in their preparation for incoming standards, we analysed the 2021 annual reports of 1,000 publicly listed companies that we understand to operate supplier finance programmes. The aim was to document whether and how they disclosed that exposure, and to identify trends, opportunities, and potential challenges they might face in satisfying more stringent standards.