The Society of Accountants and Auditors had been formed in 1885 by accountants who did not qualify for membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The Society had many colonial and foreign members particularly in Australia and South Africa, and a South African Committee was formed in 1896. In 1899, the Society amalgamated with the Scottish Institute of Accountants which had been formed in 1880; an Irish branch of the Society was set up in 1900. In 1908, the Society was renamed the Society of Incorporated Accountants and Auditors, and in 1954 it became the Society of Incorporated Accountants. In 1957 the Society amalgamated with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Scotland and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.