When IFRS 16 arrived, the challenge was learning a new accounting standard.
Now, as UK businesses work through the revised FRS 102 lease accounting requirements, many assume they're facing the same problem again.
I don't think they are.
The biggest challenge in 2026 isn't understanding the accounting. It's understanding everything around it.
In fact, lease accounting has become one of the clearest examples of how the finance profession itself is changing.
It's no longer just about the numbers
Years ago, success was measured by whether you could produce technically correct numbers. Today, that's simply the starting point. The real value comes from understanding the data, the systems, the contracts and the business decisions that sit behind those numbers.
Take data quality.
Almost every lease accounting implementation uncovers surprises. Missing vehicle leases. Property contracts held by local teams. Incomplete payment schedules. Duplicate records. Embedded leases hiding inside service agreements.
The calculations were never the problem.
Finding the right information was.
That reflects a much broader shift taking place across finance. Deloitte’s UK CFO research highlights finance’s growing role as the custodian and interpreter of business data, while noting that the development of data analytics skills has been slower than expected. Finance is no longer just reporting information. Increasingly, it is responsible for understanding and governing it.
Technology needs oversight, not blind trust
AI can now help extract lease data from contracts far more quickly. Modern platforms automate calculations that once took hours. ERP integrations reduce manual work. That's all good news.
But it doesn't mean finance professionals need to become software engineers.
The skill isn't understanding every algorithm. It's knowing whether the output makes sense.
Think of yourself less as the person doing every calculation and more as the conductor of an orchestra. You don't need to play every instrument. You do need to know when one of them sounds wrong.
That mindset is becoming increasingly valuable.
The same applies to contract interpretation. Lease accounting now requires finance teams to understand extension options, break clauses, variable payments and embedded leases. Technology can identify these clauses, but professional judgement still determines the correct accounting outcome.
Lease accounting has become a team sport
Perhaps the biggest shift is that lease accounting can no longer sit solely within Finance.
Procurement signs contracts. Property negotiates leases. HR manages company cars. Operations changes sites. Legal agrees contract amendments.
If Finance only hears about these decisions at month-end, the accounting has already become harder than it needed to be.
That's why governance is becoming just as important as debits and credits.
The finance professional's role is changing
There's an irony here.
The finance professional of 2026 probably needs to understand more disciplines than ever before, but they don't need to master all of them. They need the right toolkit, the confidence to challenge what technology produces, and the judgement to connect accounting with commercial reality.
That's a very different skill set from five years ago.
Lease accounting simply happens to be where this transformation is most visible.
Modern lease accounting platforms such as Rubli can automate calculations, maintain audit trails and improve governance. But software doesn't replace professional judgement. It gives finance teams the time and confidence to focus on what matters most: asking the right questions before the auditors do.
Frequently asked questions
How should finance teams prepare for the revised FRS 102 lease accounting requirements?
Start by building a complete lease register and checking it against contracts held by Property, Procurement, HR and Operations. Finance teams should then agree and document the key accounting judgements, gather the information needed to determine discount rates, assign responsibility for new leases and amendments, and test the process before reporting deadlines. The aim is to create a repeatable process, rather than treating implementation as a one-off calculation.
What lease data is needed for FRS 102 lease accounting?
Finance teams will generally need the relevant contracts or arrangements, including amendments and any service agreements that may contain a lease. They will also need commencement and end dates, payment schedules, rent-free periods and incentives, fixed or index-linked increases, extension, termination and purchase options, details of variable payments, and amounts expected to be payable under residual value guarantees. Information will also be needed to support the appropriate discount rate. The difficult part is often not the calculation itself, but finding complete and current information across the business.
Who should be involved in an FRS 102 lease accounting implementation?
Finance should lead the accounting, but it should not work alone. Procurement and Legal can identify new contracts and amendments, Property and Operations can confirm changes relating to sites, and HR or fleet teams may hold information about vehicle arrangements. IT may also need to support systems, integrations and access controls. Clear responsibilities help prevent important lease events from reaching Finance only at month-end or year-end.
Can FRS 102 lease accounting be managed in Excel?
Yes, particularly where the lease portfolio is small and straightforward, provided the spreadsheet is properly controlled and independently reviewed. However, as the number of leases, entities, currencies, modifications and reporting periods increases, spreadsheets become more difficult to maintain and audit. The key question is not simply whether Excel can perform the calculation, but whether the process remains accurate, controlled and sustainable as the portfolio changes.
Learn how Rubli helps finance teams manage the revised FRS 102 lease accounting requirements, or book a demo to see the platform in practice.
