Materiality is a long-standing concept in accounting standards, simply referring to when something is applicable or not. Most preparers have defined what materiality stands for and how it is applied – this was often a best practice, albeit a contradictory one.

On one hand, numerous disclosures were deemed not to be material enough and as a consequence seen as an overload. This was the view not just of preparers but also investors, who complained of not having enough relevant information.