Brydon review finds UK audit industry in need of ‘urgent reform’ December 18, 2019 The UK’s audit industry is in need of “urgent reform”, according to the findings of a year-long review into the sector. The review, which was led by Sir Donald Brydon, a former chair of the London Stock Exchange Group, calls for the creation of “a standalone and transparent audit profession” split off from the accounting [...]
Accounting watchdog ‘plots sweeping rule changes’ for company executives December 15, 2019 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is lining up significant changes to corporate governance rules after a string of scandals at Patisserie Valerie, M&C Saatchi and Ted Baker. It is understood the accounting regulator is writing a British version of an American law passed in 2002 after Worldcom and Enron collapsed. Read more: FRC watchdog probes [...]
KPMG partner pay slides after challenging year December 11, 2019 Partner pay at KPMG UK fell seven per cent in 2018-19 after a year when the firm strove to deal with the fallout from a series of scandals. In the year to 30 September, KPMG average partner pay fell to £640,000 from £690,000 the previous year. Profit before taxation and members’ profit shares fell nearly [...]
Accountancy firm Grant Thornton and one of its partners hit with fines for audit failures December 10, 2019 Accountancy firm Grant Thornton was today fined £650,000 and one of its partners £20,000 for failures in the auditing of a publicly listed company. Regulator the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said it had sanctioned the firm with a £650,000 fine (discounted to £422,500) and one of its partners £20,000 (discounted to £13,000). It has also [...]
General Election 2019: Conservative Party to ditch central tenet of Big Four audit reform plans November 25, 2019 The Conservatives will throw out a proposal to impose mandatory joint auditors on large companies if they win the General Election. Officials at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis) have in recent weeks indicated that the system is unlikely to be introduced as part of wider reform of the auditing sector, Sky [...]
KPMG to slash partner bonuses by up to 40 per cent November 24, 2019 Partners at KPMG are facing steep cuts to their bonuses as the accounting giant cuts costs in a bid to prepare for tighter regulation of its audit work. Partners’ bonuses – which can reach hundreds of thousands of pounds – are set to fall by as much as 40 per cent this year, according to [...]
Softbank in talks to take over KPMG’s private members’ club November 19, 2019 Softbank is reportedly in talks to take over the KPMG’s controversial private members’ club in Mayfair, after regulators expressed concerns the auditor was giving memberships to its clients as perks. KPMG put the five-storey club, called Number Twenty, on the market in September as part of a cost-cutting drive but stepped up efforts to offload [...]
EY partners set to take pay cut after growth slows November 19, 2019 EY UK partners are set to take a pay cut this year after the audit firm today announced anaemic revenue growth of 1.5 per cent. Average partner pay for the year ended 30 June slipped to £679,000 from £693,000 the previous year. The firm said investments in tech and audit quality and an increase in [...]
Audit watchdog could push for clawback of audit partners’ bonuses after poor quality work November 17, 2019 The audit watchdog could push for powers to clawback bonuses from audit partners if an audit fell below a certain level of quality. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is thinking of asking the government for powers to set remuneration standards for auditors, The Sunday Times reported. The idea follows scandals at department store BHS, outsourcer [...]
Watchdog says accountancy firms failing to challenge management of firms they audit November 5, 2019 Audit watchdog the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) today warned that the top firms were failing to be robust enough in challenging management of the companies they audit. The audit sector is in the political and regulatory spotlight following company failures such as the collapse of travel agent Thomas Cook and outsourcer Carillion. The FRC today [...]