The Faculty of Business Administration (FBA) of the University of Macau (UM) and the Asia Pacific Journal of Accounting & Economics (APJAE) jointly hosted the Eighth Conference of the World Accounting Frontiers Series (WAFS) from 4 December to 6 December 2019 with success. With the theme ‘Accounting and Institutional Infrastructure’, this interdisciplinary conference aimed at bridging the academic-practice gap through big data research and the exchange of a wide spectrum of accounting knowledge.

Prof Jeong Bon Kim, chair professor of accountancy and head of the Department of Accountancy at the City University of Hong Kong, and Mr Chris Tang, senior vice president and head of investment portfolio of Fubon Bank (HK), were invited to give keynote speeches.

The conference attracted more than 100 academics and industry practitioners from around the world, who shared their insights and exchanged ideas on innovation and development. A total of 56 papers were presented at the conference, which covered diverse research topics from local indigenous accounting issues to global contemporary sustainability. Seven papers were awarded as best papers and will be submitted to the APJAE for publication.

The Eighth WAFS is also one of the events in celebration of the 70^th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China, the 20^th anniversary of the Macao SAR, and the 30^th anniversary of the FBA. The conference was sponsored by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Hong Kong, Certified Practising Accountant (CPA) Australia, the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accounts (HKICPA), and Leng Kuan Accounting Centre.