Consulting
Owner-managed businesses • Growing companies • Group finance teams
Audit-ready financial statements, prepared independently of our audit teams.
Year-end reporting takes time that most finance teams do not have. Our Consulting department prepares annual financial statements from your trial balance using automated reporting software, so the figures, notes and disclosures stay consistent. Your financial statements reach your auditor or independent reviewer complete, cross-referenced and ready to be tested.
Our independence commitment
All compilation engagements at HLB CMA SA Inc. are performed by a dedicated Consulting department that is separate from our audit and assurance teams. This separation is firm policy and is not negotiable.
- The people who prepare your financial statements do not audit or review them.
- We do not compile financial statements for a company whose annual financial statements we independently review, as required by Regulation 29 of the Companies Regulations.
- Before accepting work for a client we audit, we assess independence under the IRBA Code of Professional Conduct and decline where the Code does not permit it.
- Management remains responsible for the financial statements and approves every accounting decision and adjustment.
When to speak to us
- You’re not sure whether your company needs an audit, an independent review or neither. Check in a few minutes.
- Your team spends weeks drafting, casting and cross-referencing financial statements in Word and Excel.
- Your auditor or reviewer raises the same presentation and disclosure queries every year.
- You need to submit your annual financial statements to CIPC in iXBRL format.
- You report under IFRS for SMEs and need to prepare for the third edition, effective for periods beginning on or after 1 January 2027.
- You manage several entities and want consistent financial statements across the group.
What we can do for you
Annual financial statement compilation
We compile your annual financial statements from your trial balance in accordance with ISRS 4410 (Revised), applying IFRS or IFRS for SMEs and the Companies Act. Financial statements prepared by an independent accounting professional are treated as independently compiled for Companies Act purposes, which can affect whether your company needs an audit or an independent review.
What you receive
A complete set of annual financial statements and a compilation report.
Financial statement automation
We build your financial statements in automated reporting software. Your trial balance is mapped once to the statements, notes and lead schedules. Built-in checks agree the notes to the face of the statements, and every adjustment flows through to each affected disclosure. Each year the file rolls forward, with current figures becoming comparatives.
What you receive
An automated financial statement file and a shorter year-end in every year that follows.
XBRL and CIPC submissions
We prepare your annual financial statements in the iXBRL format required by CIPC and resolve validation errors before submission with your annual return.
What you receive
A validated iXBRL file ready for submission to CIPC.
Accounting technical review
For finance teams that draft their own financial statements, we review them against IFRS or IFRS for SMEs and the Companies Act disclosure requirements before they go to your auditor or reviewer.
What you receive
A review report with proposed corrections and disclosure improvements.
IFRS for SMEs third edition transition
We assess how the revised standard affects your accounting policies, disclosures and comparatives, and update your financial statement format before your first reporting period under the third edition.
What you receive
An impact summary and an updated financial statement format.
Group template alignment
For groups with several South African entities, we align financial statement formats, accounting policies and disclosures with group reporting requirements.
What you receive
A consistent financial statement template applied across your entities.
How it works
Share your most recent signed financial statements, your trial balance, the accounting system you use, your year-end and your reporting deadlines. In the first year, we rebuild your prior-year financial statements in our reporting software and agree them to the signed version. From then on, each year starts from your new trial balance.
Before any work starts, we agree the scope, responsibilities, deliverables, timing and fees with you in an engagement letter.
Management approves accounting decisions and remains responsible for its records and financial statements. Compilation engagements are performed by our Consulting department, which is separate from our audit and assurance teams.
Let’s discuss your year-end reporting
Contact our Midrand head office to discuss your financial statements, reporting deadlines and the support you need.
Consulting insights
Practical guidance on annual financial statements, IFRS for SMEs and CIPC reporting from our Consulting department
