Watchdog probes KPMG over Wood Group audit Business The audit watchdog has opened an investigation into Big Four giant KPMG and two accountants over the accounts belonging to engineering and consulting firm John Wood Group. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) revealed on Thursday that it officially launched two separate regulatory investigations concerning the financial reporting and statutory auditing of the former London-listed group. [...]
EY and London managing partner fined over £1.3m for audit failure Big Four Big Four giant EY and its London office managing partner have been hit with a nearly £1.3m fine by the financial watchdog for audit failings related to retailer Made.com in 2021. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said the sanction follows an investigation into Julie Carlyle, who manages the City office and a portfolio of many [...]
Big Four’s AIM exodus accelerates as mid-tier firms seize mandates Big Four Mid-tier audit firms scooped up new clients as the Big Four giants executed an intentional retreat from London’s junior market. Three years ago, PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG audited nearly half of the FTSE Alternative Investment Market (AIM) 100 index with 49 clients combined. But today, the market share has collapsed to 30 clients, according [...]
Regulator flags BDO’s ‘unacceptable’ audit issues for fifth year in a row July 22, 2026 Accountancy giant BDO has been flagged for an “unacceptable” standard of audit quality by the watchdog for a fifth year in a row. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said in its yearly audit quality report that BDO’s overall audit quality fell below expected standards and “has received unsatisfactory results from regulatory inspections” consistently for five [...]
Revealed: KPMG and Deloitte offer bumper redundancy packages to slash headcount July 17, 2026 KPMG and Deloitte are offering UK staff bumper redundancy packages as they look to slash their headcount and trim costs, Morning Wire can reveal. The two accountancy companies, as well as PwC, have all ramped up their payouts to employees after a slowdown in the sector’s traditional ‘attrition model’, in which around 15-20 per cent [...]
PwC slapped with multi-million fine for audit failures at FTSE 100 firm Babcock July 16, 2026 Big Four giant PwC and a former partner have been fined over £5.5m for the audit failures of London-listed engineering giant Babcock International. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) issued disciplinary action against the firm and its audit partner, John Waters, following numerous serious audit breaches during the financial years 2019 and 2020 audits of the [...]
Exclusive: PwC set to cut audit jobs amid market slowdown July 9, 2026 PwC is set to slash its headcount in its UK audit division, the latest in a series of redundancies at Big Four accountancy giants. Morning Wire understands that those affected are senior associates and managers in the audit practice. It is understood this is due to low staff attrition in the firm’s audit practice, a [...]
Forvis Mazars and top partner hit with £600,000 fine for audit failings July 2, 2026 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has hit accountancy giant Forvis Mazars and a top partner at the firm, David Allen, with a combined £610,537 for audit failings relating to a retail firm listed on the London Stock Exchange’s main market. The FRC said it has issued the fines following an investigation into both Forvis Mazars [...]
KPMG chair and senior partners to quit firm over audit scandal fallout June 23, 2026 KPMG Australia’s chair will leave the Big Four firm in the fallout of a scandal over misusing confidential client data to win audit contracts, along with two senior partners. Martin Sheppard, who has held his position as chairman since 2023, will “shortly” resign from his position at KPMG to be replaced with an independent chair, [...]
City law firm denies ties to KPMG Australia scandal June 22, 2026 City-headquartered law firm Ashurst has denied its involvement in investigating allegations at KPMG Australia as the Big Four firms’ scandal fallout continues to heat up down under. Ashurst reportedly carried out an investigation from June to August 2025 over allegations made by a whistleblower against an unnamed former executive, following the Big Four firm conducting [...]