- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Neil Hodge2024-01-23T12:55:00
Legal experts are unconvinced record fines against audit firms imposed last year by the U.K.’s corporate governance regulator will necessarily improve audit quality.
While some firms might be tempted to shy away from large companies as audit clients because of the risks involved, thereby affecting competition, others are likely to recognize larger fines are in line with rising fee income and simply a typical risk to doing business.
In its July enforcement review, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) revealed a record 19 cases were resolved in the year 2022/23, with financial sanctions of 40.5 million pounds (U.S. $51.6 million) imposed. That total included a then-record penalty of £20 million (then-U.S. $24 million) against KPMG for dishonesty regarding its audits of Carillion and Regenersis, a figure surpassed in October when KPMG was assessed a £26.5 million (then-U.S. $32 million) fine, before reductions, for its broader Carillion failings.
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The Financial Reporting Council held back on the latest round of updates to the U.K.’s corporate governance code, as the country remains wary of pushing away businesses and investors.
The U.K. Financial Reporting Council announced it closed its investigation into Big Four firm PwC’s audit work at collapsed real estate investment trust Intu Properties.
The U.K. Financial Reporting Council’s long-planned transition to become the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority appears to be taking place no time soon, leading some to question whether the change will happen at all.
TikTok is suspending new features amid an inquiry by the European Commission into its compliance with the Digital Services Act, all while responding to a U.S. ban just signed into law.
The Czech Republic’s data protection authority issued a fine of 351 million Czech koruna (U.S. $15 million) against antivirus software vendor Avast for alleged violations of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Consolidated Nuclear Security agreed to pay $18.4 million to settle alleged False Claims Act violations regarding the submission of timecards for unworked hours to the National Nuclear Security Administration.
