General Election 2019: Conservative Party to ditch central tenet of Big Four audit reform plans November 25, 2019 The Conservatives will throw out a proposal to impose mandatory joint auditors on large companies if they win the General Election. Officials at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) have in recent weeks indicated that the system is unlikely to be introduced as part of wider reform of the auditing sector, Sky [...]
KPMG slashes headcount in transformation unit amid cost cutting drive November 20, 2019 KPMG is making redundancies in its in-house project management team as part of a campaign to slash millions of pounds in costs. KPMG told more than half of the staff in its transformation centre of expertise (TCE) this week that their jobs were at risk of redundancy, Sky News reported. The unit works across KPMG [...]
John McDonnell says Labour will break up Big Four ‘cartel’ November 19, 2019 Shadow chancellor John McDonnell today promised to break up the “cartel” of the Big Four accounting firms if Labour wins the upcoming election. “Under Labour the Big Four companies will not be allowed to continue to act like a cartel,” McDonnell told a Westminster audience during a speech on Labour’s plans for the economy. The [...]
Can you trust custom-made funds? November 19, 2019 Segregated mandates — possibly the most unsexy phrase you will come across all year. And yet, these boringly named contracts are becoming increasingly popular. When wealth management firms hire a fund manager to run a bespoke investment portfolio for their clients, this is known as a segregated mandate. Take, for example, St James’s Place (SJP), [...]
EY partners set to take pay cut after growth slows November 19, 2019 EY UK partners are set to take a pay cut this year after the audit firm today announced anaemic revenue growth of 1.5 per cent. Average partner pay for the year ended 30 June slipped to £679,000 from £693,000 the previous year. The firm said investments in tech and audit quality and an increase in [...]
Listed law firm DWF beats Brexit gloom to grow revenue November 18, 2019 Listed law firm DWF managed to boost its revenues in the first half despite persistent political uncertainty, it said today. In a trading statement to the City, DWF said it had increased group revenues by at least 10 per cent in the six months to the end of October. Read more: Listed law firm DWF [...]
Audit watchdog could push for clawback of audit partners’ bonuses after poor quality work November 17, 2019 The audit watchdog could push for powers to clawback bonuses from audit partners if an audit fell below a certain level of quality. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is thinking of asking the government for powers to set remuneration standards for auditors, The Sunday Times reported. The idea follows scandals at department store BHS, outsourcer [...]
Four areas that the next government must focus on November 14, 2019 Britain is facing a momentously critical General Election. Beyond this vote, there are unprecedented challenges and opportunities ahead in the short and long term. Regardless of the outcome, several areas will demand clarity, close attention, and innovative solutions from our next government. 1. Brexit quandary Economic confidence has fallen heavily in recent years. ACCA’s Global [...]
US law firm launches in London and plans UK expansion ‘because of Brexit’ November 10, 2019 A US law firm has launched in London to take advantage of the weakness of the pound triggered by Brexit. Tully Rinckey received regulatory approval to operate in the UK during the summer and has opened its first office in Mayfair. The firm – which opened its first international outpost in Ireland in 2018 – [...]
Law firm tries to muscle in on £1bn forex cartel claim November 6, 2019 US claimant law firm Hausfeld is trying to muscle in on a £1bn group action against a raft of banks who were found to have rigged the foreign exchange markets. The Competition Appeals Tribunal (CAT) heard today that Hausfeld is set to bring a claim by the end of November. The CAT was sitting for [...]