The statutory audit market study was launched in October 2018, and we\u2019re set to know more about the outcomes toward the end of this year.<\/p>\n
This is a key market sector where the CMA (Competition and Markets Authority) has raised a number of concerns that they\u2019re looking into. Despite previous improvements in the sector that appear to have strengthened competition, Deloitte, E&Y, KPMG and PwC reportedly remain the \u201cgo-to\u201d auditors for the majority of large companies.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s also a concern as to whether there\u2019s a lack of incentive to produce challenging reviews in terms of the performance of the companies as well.<\/p>\n
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In October 2018, the CMA launched their statutory audit market study. Their aim was to look into three key things they consider may be issues. These are:<\/p>\n
An immediate review was ordered to ensure that competition is healthy within the sector. They will also look to determine whether there’s any anti-competitive behaviour<\/strong><\/a> going on as well. The issues appear to have arisen after the catastrophic collapse of Carillion where criticism against those who were reviewing the company\u2019s books and carrying out audits was made.<\/p>\n In the initial CMA press release, Chairman of the CMA, Andrew Tyrie, candidly highlighted why this study is such an important one. He said:<\/p>\n