Should the regulator have the power to establish a standardised Code of Ethics for all the chartered accountancy bodies July 21, 2021 Loree Gourley, Chair of the ICAS Ethics Board, considers the BEIS consultation proposal for the regulator to have the power to establish and enforce a standardised Code of Ethics for all the chartered accountancy bodies. The BEIS consultation ‘Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance’ was published on 18 March 2021, with responses being due [...]
Fees rise as Big Four still dominate FTSE 100 audits market July 14, 2021 Long-standing plans to increase competition in the auditing market appear to have been delayed slightly longer, as the Big Four accounting firms continue to dominate. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC), the regulator for auditors, said that KPMG, EY, Deloitte and PwC audited all FTSE 100 companies in a roughly even four-way split. Government-backed reviews had [...]
How to build an ethical business July 12, 2021 The demand for businesses to be ethical is rising. But how can companies ensure that sustainability does not come at the cost of financial stability? Christian Koch investigates. This article was written before the coronavirus pandemic had escalated in the UK, Europe and the USA and first appears in the April 2020 issue of CA magazine. [...]
Brexit: Financial services will thrive on the world stage with access to rich foreign markets July 9, 2021 Something has changed in financial services. The events of the last week have put this beyond doubt. In the aftermath of the Brexit referendum, we were focused on designing a deep and comprehensive relationship with the EU based on alignment. When that was rejected, we hoped for the significantly less comprehensive equivalence determinations. As the [...]
Audit reforms: IoD call for caution in plans to break Big Four dominance July 8, 2021 The government should approach its plans for an audit and corporate governance reform with greater caution, said the Institute of Directors (IoD). A government white paper aimed at breaking up the concentration of the Big Four auditing firms – Deloitte, PwC, KPMG and EY has stirred criticism from the business group, who said that the [...]
Pandemic crackdown: Serious Fraud Office reports hit highest level in four years July 6, 2021 The number of fraud reports made to the Serious Fraud Office jumped to its highest level in four years during the pandemic. Fraud reports increased to 998 in the twelve months up to the end of March, a 13 per cent increase from last year’s 882 reports, according to Confirmation, part of Thomas Reuters. The [...]
EY creates independent audit board ahead of operational separation July 5, 2021 EY has appointed two independent non-executive directors to its newly created UK Audit Board, ahead of plans to operationally separate its UK audit practice from its consultancy business. Last summer the accounting watchdog asked the Big Four firms to separate their audit units from the rest of their business by 2024. Auditors have come under increased regulatory [...]
Greensill Capital: The financial scandal that just won’t go away July 5, 2021 On Friday, it was announced that Credit Suisse will pay out a further $750m to backers of its Greensill-linked supply chain finance funds. Thus far, the lender has clawed back $6.1bn of the $10bn of its funding supported by collapsed supply chain finance firm Greensill Capital, up $200m on its previous update. The news follows, [...]
MELD – the ‘Banking Stack of Cardano’ launches novel ISPO bringing in $100m of staked ADA July 2, 2021 Crypto AM Daily presents all the key points from the world of cryptocurrency, including MELD, Cardano and Bitcoin's green credentials.
Ren Baletti CA on why EDF will be powering the UK’s transformation towards zero-emissions July 1, 2021 The electric vehicle revolution is finally charging ahead. EDF’s Ren Baletti CA tells Ryan Herman why the utility giant will be powering the UK’s transformation towards a zero-emissions economy. This article first appeared in ICAS’ CA magazine. The car industry is often seen as a bellwether of our economy. In January 2021, figures from the [...]