Created: Oct 15, 2026 06:00 AM
ACCA found that 61 per cent of finance and accountancy professionals ranked the use of AI among their leading ethical challenges
A global accountancy body has issued a warning that artificial intelligence has become the profession’s leading ethical challenge. The warning from the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants comes as Bermuda’s financial regulator consults on the technology’s use across the island’s financial services industry.
The authority opened consultation in August on a draft guidance note covering BMA-regulated businesses.
The proposal would not create a new licensing regime or require companies to seek approval before using AI. Instead, it explains how existing regulatory expectations apply when the technology is used.
The BMA has emphasised that firms remain responsible for outcomes even when they use an AI system provided by a third party or another company within their group. Comments on the proposal are due by October 30.
ACCA found that 61 per cent of finance and accountancy professionals ranked the use of AI among their leading ethical challenges, almost double the 32 per cent who did so in its 2024 survey.
The ACCA’s Navigating ethics for trust report, released ahead of Global Ethics Day on October 21, was based on 1,178 responses from professionals across 135 countries.
The concerns identified in the report mirror several issues addressed by the BMA’s draft guidance. ACCA cited overreliance on AI-generated material, inadequate verification, reduced human judgment, confidentiality risks, weak oversight, poor transparency and unclear accountability.
Those questions can crop up when AI is used to support underwriting, pricing, claims, modelling, compliance, fraud detection, reporting and other finance functions.
Sarah Lane, ACCA’s head of ethics and assurance, said that accountants were not looking for a fresh layer of rules.
“Finance professionals are not asking for more rules, the fundamental principles remain the ethical anchor,” she said. “They are asking for the tools, support and guidance needed to apply the fundamental principles in an increasingly complex world.”
That position is in line with the BMA’s proposed approach, which it described as principles-based, technology-neutral and proportionate.
The regulator has said the level of oversight should be about the risk and impact of a particular AI use, rather than a company’s size or the label attached to a technology. It has also proposed that regulated entities stay accountable for their AI-supported decisions, processes and outcomes
The ACCA report found that 72 per cent of respondents believed AI tools could improve their work, suggesting the profession does not view the technology as inherently problematic.
But it said professionals must be able to question and verify outputs, document how tools were used, and explain the basis for their conclusions.
The report also found that 50 per cent of respondents believed ethical challenges had become harder to resolve in the past three years, while 53 per cent said they had seen unethical behaviour over the period. Ethical leadership and organisational culture were among the most common concerns.
The BMA’s consultation on the proposed guidance note is open until October 30.
