FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
George Town, Grand Cayman – The Auditors Oversight Authority (AOA), which is responsible for overseeing inspections of Cayman-based firms that audit market-traded companies, has appointed Mr Donald Cockburn as its first managing director.
Mr Cockburn will manage the daily activities of the AOA, and facilitate discussions with his foreign counterparts in order to have Cayman-based audits assessed and confirmed as having equivalent quality assurance systems to those of other countries. Because of requirements of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) that came into effect in July 2013, gaining recognition from EU Member States will take precedence.
‘Having an internationally recognised body in Cayman that supervises auditors alleviates the need for local firms to be subject to multiple inspections by overseas-based auditor oversight authorities’, Mr Cockburn said. He further explained that reducing the multiple inspections to one inspection per firm would save time for all concerned, and be far less disruptive to daily operations.
AOA Board Chairman Michael Austin agreed. He said he was confident that Mr Cockburn, whose appointment was effective on 19 August, will advance the work that the AOA has to do. ‘Establishing a fully functional oversight body in Cayman will once more indicate to the world that ensuring compliance with international guidelines is a top priority for the jurisdiction’, he said.
Mr Cockburn is a certified professional accountant (CPA), a former partner at Ernst & Young in Canada, and a former associate professor at the University of Waterloo (Canada). He also served as a consultant to the Cayman Islands Government during the AOA’s development phase.
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