Big Four auditors will be forced to share FTSE business December 10, 2021 Plans to force FTSE 350 companies to use challenger audit firms have been signed off by the business secretary as pressure for reform mounts, according to reports. Kwasi Kwarteng wants to push ahead with a proposal to break up the dominance of the Big Four accounting firms: Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – and is [...]
KPMG reports $32bn global revenue as Big Four record strongest performance since Enron December 9, 2021 KPMG has reported a ten per cent rise in annual global revenues, up to $32.1bn, as advisory services have boomed during the pandemic. The combined results of the Big Four consulting firms – Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC – are the strongest since the Enron scandal which resulted in the collapse of Arther Andersen, according [...]
KPMG in danger of being banned from bidding for government contracts December 1, 2021 KPMG have been threatened by the government with a ban on bidding for public contracts if there are any more scandals at the Big Four consulting firm, according to reports. The Cabinet Office issued its warning in a letter to KPMG, according to the Financial Times, which first reported the news. The ominous letter, which [...]
KPMG bets on growth in life sciences as it sets up new regulatory team in London November 30, 2021 KPMG UK has set up a new regulatory team in its life sciences practice amid increasing demand for consulting services in the area. In the face of increasing regulatory requirements and the attention drawn by the pandemic to industry practices, life sciences companies are increasingly turning to consultants. “[This is a time] where life sciences [...]
HSBC’s $94m-a-year audits may not be enough to woo Big Four accountants November 22, 2021 Fears that the UK’s biggest lender will struggle to attract the Big Four accounting firms have been stoked as HSBC prepares to tender the audits of its accounts next year, according to reports. The heads of HSBC reached out to the Big Four auditors but found they were reluctant to bid for the bank’s audits [...]
EY faces mounting staff backlash over sexual harassment case November 18, 2021 EY has come under fire from its own workforce for allowing a partner to retain his job after sexually harassing a junior female colleague on a company ski trip, according to reports. The accounting giant told staff it would do more to tackle inappropriate behaviour, following the case of Neil Hutt, a transactions partner who [...]
After 12 years: PwC likely to be replaced by EY as Aviva auditor November 18, 2021 Aviva has proposed EY as its new auditor from 2024, replacing PwC after 12 years.
Prospect of watered down UK audit reforms draws criticism November 17, 2021 Audit groups and investors have warned the government that scaling back long-awaited corporate governance and audit reforms could lead to more corporate scandals, according to reports. In a letter to business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, the chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors, John Wood, said stronger regulation of internal controls were fundamental to [...]
Top accountancy firms more likely to hire white applicants November 12, 2021 White applicants are more likely to be successful when applying for jobs in the top UK accountancy firms, over those from ethnic minority or lower socio-economic backgrounds, according to a new report. The report, published today, by charity Access Accountancy looked at the socio-economic backgrounds of people who applied for jobs at ten accounting companies, [...]
Australian treasury accused of pressuring ex-KPMG partner to omit $10bn gap in report November 8, 2021 A former KPMG partner has claimed he lost his job after being pressured by an Australian public servant to change a document that found a $10bn gap in the Treasury’s finances, according to reports. In a parliamentary hearing today, Brendan Lyon said he received “professional, ongoing attacks,” from public servants and that the Australian treasury [...]