Adoption of new technology necessary for transparent accounting system: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said that adoption of new technology is necessary for a transparent accounting system.

Transparent accounting is also so essential for sustainable economy and transparency cannot be ensured without trust and ethical accounting practices, she said.

Sitharaman, who is also in charge of the corporate affairs ministry, was speaking at the 21st World Congress of Accountants that is being jointly organised by the International Federation of Accountants (IFCA) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

"Adoption of new technology is necessary for a transparent accounting system. This is also necessary for sustainable livelihoods of our people and also for sustainable manufacturing and services.

"Innovative technologies like Web 3.0, which has already taken over our lives, can bring about a lot of changes in the way we conduct our businesses," she said.

The minister also said that technologies such as blockchain, machine learning, artificial intelligence, data analytics and cloud computing will not only improvise the accounting process but will also make decision-making process highly tech-and- machine-driven.

Web3 applications run on decentralised systems like blockchain.

She also emphasised the need for more transparency in corporate governance and that the fundamental pillar in this regard was transparent accounting.

Further, the minister mentioned about the need for a global system for sustainability reporting standards.

The four-day global conference, held once in four years, is being organised for the first time in the country. The conference was inaugurated by Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla.