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The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has warned that artificial intelligence (AI) is now a present and pressing ethical challenge for finance professionals, not a distant concern.
Marking Global Ethics Day, ACCA and the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (CISI) said the finance profession must strengthen skills, governance and policy alignment to safeguard public trust as AI becomes increasingly embedded in business practice.
Their joint report, AI Monitor: Shining a Light on AI’s Ethical Threats for Finance Professionals, identifies four main findings:
- AI is already integrated into work and daily life, making its ethical implications unavoidable.
- It poses specific risks for finance professionals, reinforcing the need to apply core ethical principles.
- AI literacy is essential to combine technical understanding with sound judgement.
- Alignment across individuals, organisations and policymakers is critical, as no group can manage the challenges alone.
The report calls on individuals to “develop ethical awareness” and use practical checklists to guide decisions. It urges organisations to strengthen governance frameworks and leadership tone, while policymakers are encouraged to align regulation and reduce fragmentation.
ACCA chief executive Helen Brand said: “Ethical threats from AI are here, they are no longer theoretical. While AI is reshaping the way finance professionals work, it does not change the foundations of our profession – the principles of integrity, objectivity, competence, confidentiality and professional behaviour.”
Tracy Vegro, chief executive of CISI, said the report confirmed “the critical link between skills, governance and trust in supporting an ethical AI ecosystem”.
The research drew on global roundtables across Asia Pacific, Africa, the UK and South Asia, where participants explored scenarios such as audit automation, algorithmic HR decision-making and data-driven tax advice. The findings concluded that while finance professionals are well placed to apply ethical judgement, success depends on wider systems of support and collaboration.
