By: Maria Ward-Brennan

Professional Services Editor Maria Ward-Brennan is the Professional Services Editor at City AM, focused on law, Big Four, and other management and accounting consulting firms. She edits the Beyond The Billable newsletter and column. She was previously a litigation reporter at The Lawyer. Contact her via email at maria.ward-brennan@cityam.com or on X @MariaW_B.

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Global advisory giant Brunswick explores capital raise

August 3, 2026

City PR and advisory heavyweight Brunswick is reportedly weighing up a fresh cash injection via a sale of a stake in the firm, setting the stage for a punchy windfall for its top executives. Five years after securing a £500m valuation following the sale of a 10.7 per cent stake to US private bank BDT [...]
Goldman Sachs criticises £1.45m paternity payout

July 31, 2026

Goldman Sachs has criticised a ruling to hand one of its former senior executives a £1.45m payout over his dismissal while on paternity leave. Jonathan Reeves, who served as the deputy global head of the Wall Street bank’s compliance ‘control room’ in London, was dismissed from his job in 2022 when he was due to [...]
Watchdog probes KPMG over Wood Group audit

July 30, 2026

The audit watchdog has opened an investigation into Big Four giant KPMG and two accountants over the accounts belonging to engineering and consulting firm John Wood Group. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) revealed on Thursday that it officially launched two separate regulatory investigations concerning the financial reporting and statutory auditing of the former London-listed group. [...]
While rivals scramble to merge, the world’s biggest law firm is playing the long game

July 30, 2026

While rival law firms grapple with mergers and headline tie‑ups, Dentons, the world’s largest law firm by size, is quietly betting that an ‘already there’ strategy will play in its favour. Dentons’ global chief executive Kate Barton told City AM the firm, like much of Big Law, is focused on globalised client relationships: “We have [...]
Grant Thornton set for $5bn CBIZ buyout in landmark accountancy deal

July 29, 2026

Grant Thornton is set to buy New York-listed management consulting firm CBIZ in a proposed $5bn deal, one of the largest transactions of its kind in the accountancy sector, creating the fifth-largest professional services firm in the US. CBIZ, the only audit firm listed on the US stock market, is set to be acquired by [...]
PwC thought leadership reports ‘100 per cent AI generated’

July 29, 2026

The Big Four giant PwC has been found to have published four ‘thought leadership’ reports that show a pattern of irresponsible AI usage, including hallucinated citations and fabricated claims. A probe by GPTZero, a company that makes AI detection software, focused on four reports published between 2024 and 2026 by PwC Middle East and found [...]
‘You can blame us’: The firm that sparked accountancy private equity gold rush

July 29, 2026

Blick Rothenberg’s chief executive, Nimesh Shah, told City AM the firm ‘killed’ the traditional partnership model a decade ago, and now stands as the blueprint that every mid-tier accountancy competitor is trying to emulate. City-based Blick Rothenberg is widely recognised as the first major UK accountancy firm to receive private equity backing, after HgCapital invested [...]
Nobel Peace Prize maker’s UK arm seeks administrator

July 28, 2026

The London Mint Office, one of the largest numismatic distributors, is lining up administrators after 20 years in business. Founded in 2006, the company is part of Europe’s largest coin company, the Samlerhuset Group, based in the Netherlands. The UK entity acts as a major retailer for collectors, including specially minted items celebrating British royalty [...]
Big Four’s AIM exodus accelerates as mid-tier firms seize mandates

July 27, 2026

Mid-tier audit firms scooped up new clients as the Big Four giants executed an intentional retreat from London’s junior market. Three years ago, PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG audited nearly half of the FTSE Alternative Investment Market (AIM) 100 index with 49 clients combined. But today, the market share has collapsed to 30 clients, according [...]
Mishcon de Reya hikes junior lawyer salaries to £110,000

July 23, 2026

Top City law firm Mishcon de Reya has upped its salaries to £110,000 for its incoming cohort of junior lawyers as the pay war continues to intensify. The firm, known for its high-profile disputes, has upped its newly-qualified salaries by 10 per cent, effective from September, while also increasing the salaries of first-year trainees to [...]

Nandy flags downsides of closer EU relations

Women’s football doesn’t need to become men’s football to succeed

The Capitalist: City AM reporter gets royal trashing by AI slop

By: Maria Ward-Brennan

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