EY’s talks on potential split to continue into Autumn September 1, 2022 EY’s talks on whether to separate its audit segment from its consulting arm are set to continue into this Autumn – despite initial suggestions the Big Four firm could reach a decision by the end of summer. The accounting firm’s internal negotiations over plans to split out its advisory business, in an effort to free [...]
KPMG shakes up UK executive committee in line with £300m growth strategy September 1, 2022 KPMG today set out plans to shake up its UK executive committee in line with efforts to bolster high-growth areas of its business by investing £300m over the next three years. The executive reshuffle will see KPMG’s chief financial officer Chris Hearld take the reins from current chief operating officer Tim Jones from 1 October. [...]
The Big Four’s legal ventures should worry mid-tier law firms August 26, 2022 THE BIG Four’s first forays into the legal sector in the 1990s ended in abject failure. Yet over the past decade, the world’s four biggest accounting firms have captured a significant share of the UK’s market for legal services, and have increasingly begun to compete with traditional firms. Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC have used [...]
PwC sued by employee over pub crawl brain injury August 22, 2022 A 28-year-old auditor, who suffered a serious brain injury on a work night out, is suing PwC over claims the firm bears responsibility for the behaviour of a manager who encouraged excessive drinking. Michael Brockie, 28, suffered a “moderate-severe brain injury” during a “pub golf” night organised by his superior, that left him with “persistent [...]
PwC partners take more than £1m each as consulting arm bolsters firm’s revenues August 18, 2022 PwC today posted “exceptional” results for the past financial year after surging demand for advice, in the face of “challenges and opportunities on multiple fronts,” bolstered the accountancy firm’s revenues The uptick in revenues for the year ended on 30 June 2022 will see partners at the accounting firm receive payouts of £920,000 – up [...]
Big Four accountancy firms capture larger share of UK legal market August 15, 2022 Major corporations are snubbing traditional law firms in increasingly going to consultancies and accounting firms for legal advice, according to new research from Thomson Reuters. The Big Four accounting firms – PwC, KPMG, EY, and Deloitte – are driving growth in the alternative legal services provider (ASLP) sector, as UK corporates increasingly turn to them [...]
Lack of social mobility in UK’s professional services sector threatens country’s growth August 11, 2022 The lack of social mobility in the UK’s financial and professional services sector poses a major threat to Britain’s “competitiveness and productivity,” the head of the Law Society has warned. The Law Society president’s warning comes after a new report from the City of London Socio-Economic Diversity Taskforce showed those from working class backgrounds are [...]
PwC fined over BT audit failings following discovery of £512m fraud August 8, 2022 The UK’s accounting watchdog today fined PwC £2.5m over claims it failed to properly scrutinize BT accounts following the discovery of a half-a-billion-pound fraud within the telecommunications firm. The UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said PwC and former partner Richard Hughes failed to treat BT’s management with sufficient professional scepticism following the discovery of a [...]
Big Four auditors up advisory fee incomes as challengers capture larger share of audit work August 5, 2022 The UK’s challenger auditing firms are increasingly capturing a larger share of Britain’s audit market, as the Big Four increasingly generate their revenues through non audit work, new data from the UK’s accounting watchdog shows. The research shows smaller auditors upped their audit fee incomes at almost twice the rate of the Big Four, as [...]
PwC global digital assets chief leaves to launch ‘crypto asset manager’ August 4, 2022 The head of PwC’s crypto business has left his position at the Big Four accountancy firm to launch his own “crypto asset management firm” with a view to drawing institutional investors into cryptocurrencies. The new fund, Nine Blocks Capital Management, is set to use a $75m initial investment from Hong Kong fund Nine Masts, to [...]