KPMG’s failings led to Carillion’s collapse, High Court lawsuit says November 28, 2022 KPMG’s incompetence in its audits of Carillion played a core part in the construction giant’s 2018 collapse, Carillion’s liquidators have said, as part of a £1.3bn lawsuit against the Big Four accounting firm. KPMG’s 2016 audit of Carillion lulled the construction firm’s board into a false sense of security that saw the firm make a [...]
EY split could undermine audit quality, former partners warn November 17, 2022 More than 150 former EY partners have written a letter to the accounting firm’s board, warning its plans to split in two could weaken both segments of the business and undermine EY’s audit quality. The ex-EY partners noted the firm’s new standalone audit business – AssureCo – will have “significantly lower” earnings than its advisory [...]
EY to delay partner votes due to complex legal wrangling November 14, 2022 Votes on plans to split EY in two are not set to begin until the start of next year, after being delayed by legal wrangling. The ballots, which were set to start this month, will not take place until early 2023, due to the complexities the firm has faced in finalizing the legal framework through [...]
FRC fines hit record highs as watchdog sends ‘clear message’ to UK’s audit sector November 14, 2022 The UK’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) fined auditors a record £33.3m in the year running up to 30 September 2022, new figures from Thomson Reuters Confirmation shows. The record high sum marks a 77 per cent increase on the £18.7m fines – after discounts and adjustments – handed out in the previous year. The [...]
Cypriot PwC partners set up new firm to continue working with Russian clients November 8, 2022 Three ex-partners from PwC’s Cyprus office have left the Big Four accountancy firm to set up a new rival practice in order to continue working with Russian clients. The launch of KiteServe comes after the three ex-PwC partners took early retirement from the Big Four firm in June, after its sanctions policy blocked them [...]
UK’s new government should simply ‘get on’ with audit reform, letter to Rishi Sunak says November 4, 2022 The UK’s new government should simply “get on” with plans to overhaul the audit sector, to ensure the long-term stability and resilience of Britain’s economy, the head of one of the country’s largest accountancy sector trade bodies has said. In three separate letters to prime minister Rishi Sunak, business secretary Grant Shapps and chancellor [...]
EY revenues hit record highs as partners prepare to vote on global split November 1, 2022 EY’s UK business today posted record revenues of more than £3.2bn as partners at the Big Four firm prepare to vote on plans for a global split. The UK business’ revenues increased 17.2 per cent as the accountancy firm’s fee incomes were bolstered by a 33 per cent uptick in consulting revenues. A 15 per [...]
EY’s Israeli business opts-out of global split October 25, 2022 EY’s Israeli business will not participate in the accounting firm’s global split, but will instead retain its current structure under which auditors and consultants work together under a single umbrella. The Israeli firm’s managing partner Doron Sharabany told the Financial Times the firm does not see the benefits of EY’s separation plans. “From our point [...]
EY announces record intake of almost 1,500 students with 40 per cent in regional hubs October 12, 2022 Big four accountancy firm EY (Ernst & Young) has announced a new intake of almost 1,500 students, with two-fifths based in regional office. EY’s new cohort of 1269 graduates and more than 200 apprentices is a 35 per cent increase on the young cohort for 2021. The firm was the first to remove the requirement [...]
Grant Thornton triples paternity leave offering as talent war continues October 5, 2022 Grant Thornton has tripled the length of its paid paternity leave offering from two to six weeks as the UK’s top accounting firms have increasingly turned to offering staff perks and benefits in their efforts to recruit and retain talent. The accounting firm will offer its staff six weeks of paid paternity leave from [...]