David Cairns advises companies, accounting firms, investment banks, stock exchanges, government agencies and standard setting bodies on IFRS and other international financial reporting issues. He provides training for preparers and users of IFRS financial statements.

David Cairns is a chartered accountant. He was the secretary-general of the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) from 1985 to 1994. He is a member of the IASB’s advisory group on the application of IFRS to small and medium entities and in emerging economies.

David Cairns is visiting professor in accounting and finance at the London School of Economics and Political Science where he teaches a post-graduate course on international accounting.

Prior to joining the IASC, David Cairns was a partner in Stoy Hayward & Co and chairman of that firm’s international accounting and auditing committee. David Cairns has also worked for Société Générale, Black & Decker, Carlsberg and Pannell Kerr Forster.

In June 1995, David Cairns was appointed an OBE in recognition of his services to the accountancy profession. He was awarded a plaque by the International Federation of Accountants in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the international accountancy profession.