Lisbon, Sept. 15, 2025 (Lusa) - Portugal's finance minister attributed a central role to accountants in the economy on Monday, considering them "the first line of supervision" to prevent "failures" in the financial and non-financial systems.
"Accountants are the first line of supervision. They are the professionals who ensure that companies comply with the legal framework, that income and expenses are declared correctly and that tax obligations are met on time and in the right amount," said Joaquim Miranda Sarmento at the opening of the conference "Ethics and independence in auditing: pillars of resilience and competitiveness in times of uncertainty", organised in Lisbon by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA). This international body sets ethical standards in the area of auditing.
Miranda Sarmento said that "history, both internationally and in Portugal, is a sobering lesson in the costs of ethical failures" and that when problems occur, as was the case with the collapse of Lemon Brothers in September 2008, the consequences "are not limited" to individuals, but "have repercussions on entire economies and societies".
"Trust is, in fact, the most valuable asset we have and, once it is lost, it can be recovered," he said, emphasising that for this to happen, "ethical conduct in accounting and risk management is essential".
In the case of accountants, the subject of the IESBA conference taking place at the Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (ISEG), professional conduct "has implications for society as a whole", said Miranda Sarmento.
Professionals must "ensure that information remains reliable to protect the public interest and preserve trust in institutions", he said.
The finance minister listed "integrity, objectivity, competence, independence, confidentiality and professional conduct" as principles that should guide the activities associated with accounting.
"These are not optional virtues. They are professional obligations that safeguard decision-making in environments where pressure and complexity are commonplace," he added, noting that "the quality of the information that accountants produce and the knowledge they have is vital to the health of our economies and markets".
"The reliability of financial and non-financial reports allows investors to allocate resources efficiently and companies to evaluate capital, and the damage is systemic," he added.
This is a shared responsibility, which is not just the responsibility of accountants and auditors. "Banks, insurance companies - the financial system - are deeply interconnected and the failure of one party can quickly spread across borders," he warned.
Opening the conference, Gabriela Figueiredo Dias, former president of the Securities Markets Commission (CMVM) and current head of the IESBA, said that the role of political leadership "is fundamental to defending ethics and the frameworks that underpin trust in the markets".
Paula Franco, member of the Association of Certified Accountants, stressed that accountants have a "duty to serve society with honesty, rigour and responsibility".
"It is ethics that demonstrates the public interest of our profession," she said.
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