UK accounting watchdog calls on top auditors to put in place measures to stop cheating on exams July 18, 2022 The UK’s accounting watchdog has called on the country’s major audit firms to put measures in place to prevent employees from cheating on exams. Following a series of high-profile cheating scandals in Canada, Australia and the US, the UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has told British auditors to set out their plans to prevent similar [...]
Grant Thornton slapped with multi-million pound fine after FRC calls out ‘serious failings’ in Sports Direct audit July 18, 2022 The UK’s accounting watchdog today hit Grant Thornton with a £2.05m over “serious failings” in its audits of high-street retailer Sports Direct. The fines come after the UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said Grant Thornton had failed to properly scrutinize Sports Direct’s relationship with an unnamed delivery company and the impact the relationship would have [...]
PwC set for record revenues as global chief rejects plans for split July 18, 2022 The global head of PwC has said the accounting firm is set to post record revenues of around $50bn this year, after speaking out against plans to follow in the footsteps of EY by separating out PwC’s audit and advisory businesses. In an interview with the Financial Times, PwC global chairman Bob Moritz said the [...]
UK’s audit watchdog sets out plans to shakeup Britain’s accounting sector July 12, 2022 The UK’s accountancy watchdog has vowed to put in place a raft of new measures to increase standards in the UK’s audit sector in a bid to pave the way for the UK government’s long-awaited reforms. The UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) on Tuesday published a paper outlining its plans to revise existing codes, strengthen [...]
Wirecard forged client list to secure £760m investment from SoftBank July 11, 2022 German payments processer Wirecard forged client data in its efforts to secure €900m (£760m) in investment from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, as it sought to reassure investors about the fundamentals of its business before it collapsed the following year. The Bavarian fintech firm showed SoftBank’s representatives a fabricated list of clients on a computer in Wirecard’s [...]
Professional services network Xeinadin buys up Doncaster accounting firm Smith Craven July 11, 2022 London headquartered professional services firm Xeinadin has acquired Doncaster based accountancy firm Smith Craven. Xeinadin, which was formed through coming together of more than 100 independent accountancy firms throughout the UK and Ireland in 2019, has absorbed Smith Craven into its network, after first investing in the firm earlier this year. First established in 1928, [...]
PwC partners set to receive record payouts of more than £1m this year July 7, 2022 Partners at PwC are set to earn more than £1m each for the first time ever this year, after an “exceptional” trading period boosted the accountancy firm’s profits. The accounting firm has told partners that their £920,000 profit-per-partner pay packages will be bolstered by £100,000 windfalls from the sale of PwC’s global mobility services business, [...]
UK’s cost of living crisis has created ‘perfect conditions for fraud to flourish,’ new report says July 6, 2022 The UK’s cost of living crisis is creating the “ideal environment for fraudulent activity,” a new report from the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors (CIIA) has warned. Covid-19, the war in Ukraine, and the UK’s cost-of-living crunch are creating the “perfect conditions for fraud to flourish,” the report says, as it calls on businesses to [...]
Wirecard’s finance chief admits forging documents after facing pressure from KPMG July 4, 2022 Wirecard’s former head of accounting has admitted forging documents, after coming under pressure to provide evidence of transactions during a special audit by KPMG. Wirecard’s ex-chief financial officer, Stephan von Erffa, told prosecutors he falsified the documents, after coming under pressure from the auditor to provide evidence of a €50m payment, according to sources speaking [...]
EY agrees record $100m settlement with US regulator over ethics exam cheating scandal June 28, 2022 EY has reached $100m (£82m) settlement with the US Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) over claims the Big Four firm’s auditors cheated on accounting exams and later misled the watchdog’s investigators. The US financial watchdog said in a statement that EY had agreed to pay the highest penalty ever imposed on an audit firm by [...]