Research On Information Disclosure Of Key Audit Matters In Trust Industry

Asymmetric information in the capital market has caused damage to investors’ interests and the separation of corporate ownership and management rights has led to the emergence of certified public accountants.With the diversified development of the economy,due to the lack of innovation and diversity in traditional audit reports,they cannot meet the growing demand.Therefore,the standard "ISA701-Communication of Key Audit Matters in Independent Certified Public Accountants’ Reports" was proposed accordingly.This article uses literature research,case analysis,and comparative analysis methods to analyze the industry characteristics and audit situation of key audit matters disclosed by listed companies in the trust industry from 2017 to 2021.It is found that the total number of key audit matters disclosed in the trust industry fluctuates between20 and 30,with the average number of disclosures being relatively large in 2017 and2018,and stabilizing at around 2.5 in the following three years;The types of events focus on the valuation and termination of financial instruments,asset impairment,and the scope of structured entity consolidation;The forms of disclosure are divided into table format and textual narrative format.Subsequently,taking X Trust as an example,a specific comparative analysis was conducted on the disclosure information of key audit matters of X Trust from 2017 to 2021.It was found that the disclosure of key audit matters in the trust industry did not reflect the industry characteristics of key audit matter disclosure more effectively;The disclosure of key audit matters involves a single amount of information,with less non-financial information disclosed;The reasons for the confirmation of events are not clearly disclosed,and the similarity of the confirmation reasons for the same type of event disclosure is high;The lack of targeted response to matters and the lack of additional assistance or specific audit response measures tailored to the characteristics of the enterprise.And based on the above issues of X Trust,extend it to the entire industry and propose suggestions from a social perspective,including from the perspective of certified public accountants themselves,requesting to improve their professional literacy,strengthen their professional skills and level;From the perspective of the firm,it is proposed that the firm should establish unified rules and regularly arrange for employees to learn;Propose suggestions from the regulatory agency level to refine industry characteristics and strengthen supervision;Propose suggestions from the perspective of the audited unit to actively cooperate with the work of certified public accountants and enhance their own advantages.From the implementation of the new audit reporting standards to the present,it has only been a short period of five years.Whether the disclosure of key audit matters can further enhance the information content of audit reports,whether this measure can improve audit quality,and whether the disclosure of these matters can provide effective assistance for investors’ investment decisions and achieve investment goals are all key concerns of people,Studying key audit matters in the trust industry can enrich the disclosure of key audit matters,provide personalized industry information,and promote the improvement of relevant standards;Secondly,it can provide guidance for certified public accountants in specific operations.In addition,there is currently relatively little research on key audit matters related to a specific industry in China,with most of it concentrated in the medical industry,automotive industry,and mechanical manufacturing industry.There is even less research on the trust industry.The innovation of this article lies in the study of the trust industry,which enriches the industry research on key audit matters and can provide a basis for the future information disclosure focus of certified public accountants,Furthermore,it enables regulatory agencies to focus on key areas of concern and provide targeted supervision of enterprises.