By Ferdinand Elfers and Jochen Pierk While Big Four auditing firm EY is facing legal action over the 1.9 billion EUR accounting fraud that has led to the collapse of its client, Munich-based payments firm Wirecard, the scandal has also turned the spotlight on an apparent failure of the responsible supervisory authorities. Indeed, the German government did not hesitate to terminate its contract with the Financial Reporting Enforcement Panel (FREP), a private-sector body that was…

This analysis was originally posted by Audit Analytics. Note: This post has been updated to reflect auditor changes not previously included in this analysis, specifically relating to the DAX 30. There are 12 accounting firms that audit Germany’s top 160 companies. Perhaps coming as no surprise, the Big Four account for 91% of the top company market, with KPMG leading as the auditor of 51 companies, followed by PwC with 46, then EY and Deloitte…

Despite the significance of DB pension plans for risk and investment decisions (Campbell et al., 2012; Cardinale, 2007; Jin et al., 2006; Rauh; 2006), before the adoption of IFRS in 2005 some EU countries, including France, did not require pension plan transparency under domestic accounting standards. In a recent study, published in the European Accounting Review (EAR), Vicky Kiosse, Peter Pope and I study the changes in financial policies following a regulatory shock to the accounting transparency of…

This analysis was originally posted by Audit Analytics. According to Article 13 of the Audit Regulation of 2014 (Regulation EU 537/2014), a statutory auditor of a public interest entity (PIE) must publish an annual transparency report on the firm’s website, at the latest four months after the end of each financial year. Among other disclosures, the transparency report must include a list of public interest entities for which the statutory auditor or audit firm carried out…

I think it is helpful to add some information to the Audit Analytics blog post about concentration in the market for PIE statutory audits in the Netherlands. I add information about concentration in the market for non-PIE statutory audits. It is noteworthy that in the market for non-PIE statutory audits the same process of concentration is occurring. I also add some reflections and a suggestion. Some context: the Dutch auditing oversight body is called AFM,…

This analysis was originally posted by Audit Analytics.   Since our last analysis of key audit matters in December 2019, the Audit Analytics KAMs database has grown to include over 40,000 KAMs from the audit opinions of over 4,600 companies. KAMs, required under ISA 701 for fiscal years ending on or after December 15, 2016, are intended to increase the usefulness and information provided in the auditor’s opinion. The disclosures made by the auditor are supposed to…

This analysis was originally posted by Audit Analytics. Auditor market share is extremely concentrated in the Netherlands due to the dwindling number of audit firms registered to audit public interest entities (PIEs). In 2018, there were nine audit firms licensed to audit PIEs. However, in the past year, three have chosen to leave the PIE market, leaving both listed and non-listed PIEs searching for new auditors long before the mandatory rotation. Following Regulation (EU) No 537/2014 of…

This analysis was originally posted by Audit Analytics. This post will be updated to reflect the current number of filings citing the COVID-19 pandemic in a going concern opinion, key audit matter, or emphasis of matter.   Overall Statistics As of the week ended 17 July 2020, Audit Analytics has observed the following trends in European audit opinions referencing COVID-191: Going Concern Modifications: 126 Emphasis of Matter: 215 Key Audit Matters: 336 Based on company…

The Brazilian Accounting Association (ANPCont – Associação Nacional de Programas de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Contábeis) is organizing a webinar on Data Analytics in Accounting and Auditing. The Webinar is free for the community, it's only necessary the registration here (Link: https://bit.ly/AnpcontDataAnalytics). Date: 07/22/2020 at 6pm – São Paulo Time Zone UTC -3.   Prof. Partha Mohapatra is Accounting Analytics assistant professor of California State University at Sacramento. He teaches Accounting Analytics, Accounting Information Systems and Managerial Accounting…

As accounting educators, our job is to impart knowledge and skills that will make our students successful in their careers, and then test them on how well they retained them. Right? My 10-year-old son's primary school farewell party last week made me wonder if that is all, and not for the first time. The kids had made a heart-warming 25-minute video for their teacher. Asked about what they liked most about her, many said things…