The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) announced on Wednesday it is pushing back the implementation of new disclosure requirements under the Basel III capital adequacy regime for the domestic systemically important banks (D-SIBs) from the end of fiscal 2017 until the end of fiscal 2018 (which is Oct. 31 for the big six banks).

The delay follows consultations with the industry, and will allow the D-SIBs to focus on implementing certain new accounting standards first, the regulator says.

The new deadline also better aligns with the planned implementation dates of other major jurisdictions, OSFI adds.

“The 2018 implementation date allows D-SIBs to continue to be among the leaders in disclosure, while giving them time to focus on a high quality implementation of the IFRS [financial instruments] accounting standard,” OSFI says in a statement.

The federal banking regulator adds that the need for strong disclosure practices must be balanced with the “significant level” of effort required to implement the new accounting standards.

OSFI will issue a final guideline on the implementation of the revised disclosure standards in 2017.

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