ICAI announces Online Panel of Experts for Addressing Bank Branch Audit Related Queries

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India ( ICAI ) has set up an online team of experts to help with questions about bank branch audits. CA. (Dr.) Sanjeev Kumar Singhal, Chairman, AASB and CA. Vishal Doshi, Vice Chairman, AASB.

As it gets closer to the time when banks need auditing, auditors are dealing with lots of new rules from the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI ). These include changes to how much money banks need to keep, rules about recognizing income, and how to classify assets, among other things.

To help with all these changes, the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board ( AASB ) of the ICAI has put out a new guidebook for auditing banks in 2024. This guidebook is meant to help auditors understand and handle these new rules.

The banking sector’s complexity, spanning diverse geographies and customer segments, coupled with the array of financial products and services offered, presents auditors with formidable challenges in meeting audit deadlines. Challenges range from assessing Non-Performing Asset ( NPA ) status to interpreting complex data encountered during branch audits, and understanding the implications of RBI circulars.

To aid auditors in addressing these challenges and resolving queries effectively, the ICAI – AASB has established an Online Panel of Experts dedicated to addressing Bank Branch Audit-related queries for the financial year 2023-24.

For assistance, auditors are encouraged to submit their queries to bankauditfaq@icai.in  from April 1st, 2024, to April 30th, 2024.

Panel Convenors

CA. (Dr.) Sanjeev Kumar Singhal, Chairman, AASB and CA. Vishal Doshi, Vice Chairman, AASB.

The ICAI has stated that “The members are specifically informed that the views expressed by the experts of the Panel would be their personal views and not necessarily the views of the AASB or the ICAI. AASB, ICAI or the experts of the Panel, do not accept any responsibility for actions taken by the querists based on such advice. Further, these views are not to be used as evidence in any non-judicial/ quasi-judicial/ judicial proceeding before any authority.”

To serve better, the concerned enquirer is advised to follow the below needs:

1. Be brief but provide full information and facts.
2. Not to mention the name of the Bank or Branch or the name of the Borrower or Depositor to avoid the problem of violation of client confidentiality requirements under the ICAI’s Code of Ethics.
3. Avoid rejoinders.
4. Not to send the same query twice.
5. Draft the report on your own.
6. Use your own judgment.

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