Regulator calls out ‘poor’ board succession planning at FTSE 350 companies November 25, 2021 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) have called out listed companies for “poor reporting” on succession planning, board appointments and diversity, in a review of corporate governance reporting. The FRC said companies provided “minimal information” to show how diversity and inclusion policies and objectives link to their business strategy. The regulator said that while lots of companies [...]
Former BT chief Du Plessis selected to take over as audit watchdog chair December 21, 2021 Jan du Plessis, the former Chairman of BT as well as a host of FTSE 100 companies, has been selected as chair of the UK's audit watchdog.
KPMG halts referrals to its former restructuring unit in bid to recover from Silentnight scandal December 20, 2021 KPMG will no longer refer any work to its former insolvency unit, Interpath Advisory, in a bid to mend its reputation after the scandal over the sale of bed manufacturer Silentnight to a private equity firm, according to reports. The Big Four firm was fined £13m by the UK accounting watchdog earlier this year for [...]
KPMG gave ‘untruthful defence’ in tribunal over £13m Silentnight fine October 13, 2021 The UK accounting watchdog has today denounced KPMG for knowingly giving an “untruthful” defence over its conflict of interest in the 2011 sale of Silentnight, for which it was fined £13m. The verdict of the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) disciplinary tribunal marks the first time ever that the body has found an accountancy to have [...]
UK’s new government should simply ‘get on’ with audit reform, letter to Rishi Sunak says November 4, 2022 The UK’s new government should simply “get on” with plans to overhaul the audit sector, to ensure the long-term stability and resilience of Britain’s economy, the head of one of the country’s largest accountancy sector trade bodies has said. In three separate letters to prime minister Rishi Sunak, business secretary Grant Shapps and chancellor [...]
EY’s talks on potential split to continue into Autumn September 1, 2022 EY’s talks on whether to separate its audit segment from its consulting arm are set to continue into this Autumn – despite initial suggestions the Big Four firm could reach a decision by the end of summer. The accounting firm’s internal negotiations over plans to split out its advisory business, in an effort to free [...]
EY handed fine for botched Stagecoach audit August 25, 2021 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has landed EY and its Audit Engagement Partner, Mark Harvey with £2.3m in fines. The FRC said that an EY audit of StageCoach, an international travel company, “did not satisfy the audit reporting requirements” for the 2016-2017 financial year. Claudia Mortimore, the Deputy Executive Counsel to the FRC said: “the [...]
‘Severe reprimand’ for Patisserie Valerie audit: Grant Thornton failed and was incompetent, says watchdog September 27, 2021 Red flags were missed while auditing the collapsed cake chain Patisserie Valerie, and auditors failed to question management properly. Overall, it showed a serious lack of competence, according to regulators this morning. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) made its findings against accounting giant Grant Thornton and auditor David Newstead, handing them fines of £2.3m and [...]
Chair of audit watchdog the FRC Simon Dingemans resigns after less than nine months May 20, 2020 Former Glaxosmithkline finance boss Simon Dingemans has stepped down as chair of audit watchdog the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) less than nine months after taking the role. Dingemans was appointed last July to chair the FRC and oversee its transformation to the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA) after the FRC was heavily criticised for [...]
Watchdog slams KPMG for ‘unacceptable’ bank audits for third year running July 26, 2021 KPMG has been called out for failing to meet standards in its bank audits for the third year in a row, by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) in a review published on Friday, that found that a third of large company audits by the biggest UK firms failed to meet standards. The industry watchdog called [...]