Big Four accountants retain hold over blue-chip audit jobs October 27, 2009 ATTEMPTS to inject more competition into firms that audit UK company books have suffered a setback as figures released yesterday showed the “Big Four” accountants maintaining their stranglehold on the sector. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) set up a market participants group three years ago which made recommendations to spread this business more evenly. It [...]
Revenues at Deloitte drop in the slump October 26, 2009 PROFESSIONAL services group Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu saw its full-year global revenues drop five per cent to $26.1bn (£16bn) yesterday, as accountants worldwide feel the pinch from a dearth in major mergers and acquisitions. Deloitte’s chief executive Jim Quigley said the performance of the group, one of the big four accountancy firms, was satisfactory given the [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 26, 2009 KPMGThe accountancy firm’s forensic practice has recruited Nigel Layton, the founder of specialist corporate investigations firm Quest, as a director in the corporate intelligence team. Layton set up Quest in 1995 and has since built up its reputation via cases including an inquiry for the Premier League into allegations of irregular payments surrounding certain football [...]
L&G puts LGC up for sale as DNA profiling to solve crime increases October 25, 2009 FORENSIC science group LGC, the company which helps with murder investigations and paternity testing, is up for sale. Legal & General Ventures, the private equity group, is selling it off for £200m, after acquiring it for £80m in 2003. It is a massive turnaround for the group – which was also involved in investigating the [...]
Zurich loses 51,000 clients’ data October 22, 2009 Swiss insurer Zurich Financial Services said it had called in auditors KPMG to investigate after details of 51,000 UK customers were lost at a data storage centre in South Africa. There is no sign so far the information has been misused by fraudsters, Zurich’s UK subsidiary said. KPMG will investigate the incident and will also [...]
City Airport owner snaps up Gatwick October 21, 2009 THE UK’s second largest airport, Gatwick, is facing a massive shake-up after BAA yesterday sold it for £1.5bn to City Airport owner Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP). The new owner said that it wants to challenge rival Heathrow by overhauling services and could add new destinations. Michael McGhee, the GIP partner leading the acquisition, said the [...]
The numbers man on why London needs to give the right message October 21, 2009 John Griffith-Jones definitely comes across as a man on a mission. Whether he’s talking about hooking accountancy giants KPMG up with as many of its European partners as possible, helping the banks through one of the most catastrophic crises in their history, preserving the status of London as a financial centre, or teaching young children [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 19, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES FURTHER VAT RISES LIKELY AS EUROPE SETS THE PACEBritain will be levying the fifth-lowest value-added tax rate in Europe after it reverts to 17.5 per cent in January, according to a survey that is likely to reinforce expectations of further rises after the general election. A survey by KPMG, the professional services group, [...]
Half of all PEdeals distressed October 19, 2009 HALF of all private equity deals are now being completed under distressed conditions, according to accountants KPMG. But the firm said this is not a surprisingly high level “given the hype around distressed balance sheets”. Michael McDonagh, a partner at the firm, said there were only 17 deals above £10m over the last quarter and [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 13, 2009 RothschildThe bank has hired Penny Lovell as client director in its private banking and trust business. Lovell joins from Fleming Family & Partners, where she spent eight years in a variety of senior client relationship roles, most recently as group head of business development. Prior to that, she spent five years at Coutts & Co, [...]