Outrage-induced regulation will not fix the broken audit market October 12, 2018 The audit market is broken. Don’t take my word for it – ask Rachel Reeves, the Labour MP who chairs the BEIS select committee, or Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable, or even the Conservative business secretary Greg Clark, who last month ordered an inquiry into competition in the sector. With such cross-party concerns, it should not [...]
With the CMA scrutinising the Big Four, can we still trust auditors? October 11, 2018 With the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) scrutinising the Big Four, can we still trust auditors? Yes – Michael Izza is chief executive of the ICAEW. Every year, hundreds of thousands of audits are performed to the highest professional and ethical standards. Auditors underpin business confidence by providing independent verification that a company’s financial statements [...]
Competition watchdog investigates British Airways’ transatlantic flight agreement October 11, 2018 An investigation into British Airways’ revenue-sharing partnership on transatlantic flights is underway, a watchdog announced today. The decade-old Atlantic Joint Business Agreement sees BA, American Airlines, Iberia and Finnair split revenue on all passenger routes between Europe and the US. Read more: Moody's: BA and Easyjet among airlines 'most exposed to a no-deal Brexit' The European [...]
SSE’s merger with Npower gets the all-clear from UK competition watchdog October 10, 2018 The merger of two major energy firms in the UK has been given final clearance by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), paving the way for SSE Energy and Npower to join together as a newly listed company on the London Stock Exchange. The CMA published its final ruling this morning, after the merger was [...]
US professional services firm backs ‘engine for growth’ London as European launchpad October 9, 2018 EisnerAmper, a top-twenty US professional services firm, celebrated the launch of its London office tonight as it laid out “ambitious plans” for European growth. Its London offices, which will act a staging post for the firm’s continental expansion plans, will be led by Robert Mirsky, a former global head of hedge funds at Big Four [...]
Google preparing to appeal EU’s €4.3bn Android fine October 9, 2018 Google is expected to challenge European competition authorities tomorrow, as the deadline to appeal the EU's record-breaking €4.3bn fine against its parent firm Alphabet comes to pass. The tech giant was charged by regulators over "serious illegal behaviour" with its Android operating system in July. Brussels ruled that Google had forced smartphone makers to favour its own [...]
Competition watchdog launches review of audit sector October 9, 2018 The competition watchdog today confirmed it has launched a probe into the UK's audit sector, ending weeks of speculation. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it will review whether the sector is competitive and resilient enough to maintain high standards. Calls to review the sector and possibly break up the "Big Four" of PwC, KPMG, Deloitte and EY [...]
Five key takeaways from the FRC’s audit sector report October 8, 2018 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC), the audit sector’s watchdog, released its annual Developments in Audit report yesterday, outlining key challenges faced in the sector and assessing the current state of the profession. Audit is under close scrutiny at the moment, as politicians and regulators look closely at the dominance of the Big Four audit firms Deloitte, [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland name ‘under review’ as bank rebuilds its reputation after financial crisis October 8, 2018 The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is reportedly considering changing its name to distance itself from the financial crisis 10 years ago. The RBS name is under review as part of a rebrand, chairman Sir Howard Davies said yesterday, as the bank claims to have fixed historical problems as it turns its attention to its [...]
BDO reveals profit boost as it raises concerns over Brexit and audit break-up October 8, 2018 One of Britain’s largest professional services firms has warned that business leaders need clarity to prepare for Brexit and sounded a cautious note over reforms to the audit sector as it revealed rising profit and revenues. BDO posted an underlying revenue of £464.1m in its 2017/18 annual results, released today, an increase of 8.5 per [...]