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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Fuel crisis grounds thousands of flights as Iran war sends oil prices soaring

March 31, 2026

Thousands of flights have been cancelled, and more are planned, as global airlines struggle with surging fuel costs in the wake of the war in Iran. According to data by aviation analytics company Cirium, more than one in 20 flights scheduled to take off on Monday were cancelled. Jet fuel, which is generally more expensive [...]
As KPMG looks to cut hundreds of staff, expect more layoffs at the Big Four

March 31, 2026

The Big Four giants, after hitting pandemic-era highs, are currently navigating a perfect storm of challenges: a harsher market, a surge in AI investment and a stagnant economy. These pressures are forcing firms to take a pair of shears to their workforces as the industry’s traditional “attrition model” fails to keep pace with reality. Over [...]
Sanctioned Russian oligarch’s charity launches legal action against Barclays

March 30, 2026

The Potanin Foundation, a UK charity of its Russian sister organisation, the Vladimir Potanin Foundation, has launched legal action against Barclays Bank in London via advisory firm Forvis Mazars. Founded in 2006 by the former Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Vladimir Potanin, the organisation has focused on education, culture, and philanthropy. The charity was intervened [...]
Burford Capital shares crash after US court overturns $16bn Argentina ruling

March 30, 2026

Shares in the dual-listed group Burford Capital have dropped nearly 50 per cent since a US court overturned a ruling in favour of Argentina, a blow to the litigation funder. The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the District Court’s previous ruling that found Argentina liable to pay $16bn to former shareholders [...]
Deloitte confirms tax head to replace Richard Houston

March 30, 2026

Big Four giant Deloitte has selected Darren Graves to succeed Richard Houston, who is stepping up to lead the newly created Deloitte EMEA unit. Graves will be the next senior partner and chief executive from June, after winning a confirmatory vote by the firm’s partners. However, according to media reports, he was put forward as [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Dollar dips amid Trump oil threats; motor finance decision expected

March 30, 2026

Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. In a fresh escalation of the conflict in the Middle East, Donald Trump has said that he wants to “take the oil in Iran”, with the US dollar taking a hit this morning. In an interview with the Financial Times, the US President said that [...]
EY’s legal provisions balloon 300 per cent as audit battles mount

March 27, 2026

Big Four giant EY has reported a surge of over 300 per cent in its legal provisions, as the firm grapples with the fallout of high-profile audit failures and regulatory crackdowns. According to the firm’s latest results on Companies House, EY didn’t just add a small buffer; it added £188m in new claims-related charges in [...]
How Bishopsgate became London’s Midtown Manhattan for law firms

March 26, 2026

If you’ve had the pleasure of visiting a top law firm in London, you might mistake yourself for being in an episode of smash US legal drama (and Duchess of Sussex starring) Suits. Increasingly City firms’ offices have a more American feel to them. In the City of London, it is not just a race [...]
Crispin Odey accused of ‘trying to manipulate’ a woman he assaulted

March 25, 2026

Crispin Odey has been accused of “trying to manipulate” a woman into silence, after the financial regulator alleged that the disgraced financier tried to discourage her from giving a full account of her experience with him. In text messages shown in court sent to a woman, Odey said: “Really sorry… the FCA is pursuing a [...]
Regulator unveils major overhaul to its audit supervision

March 25, 2026

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is introducing a major overhaul of its audit supervisory model, aiming to replace the current system with one designed to enhance audit quality. The accountancy watchdog is moving its primary focus to a system of quality management (SoQM), placing firm-wide quality controls at the heart of its new supervisory activity. [...]

Nvidia shares set to slide as spy scandal threatens AI recovery

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

Tamdhu: The scotch whisky taking on Macallan

By: Maria Ward-Brennan

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