More on KPMG and the Precedents for Possible Punishment
Why did they do it? The WSJ walks around the question but KPMG may face big fines and, I think, its partners and the PCAOB professional could face criminal charges.
Posts
KPMG Takes Its Turn With a Big 4 -Sized Scandal
/1 Comment/in Madoff, Pure Content, Your CareerThe KPMG/PCAOB scandal is neither the first or last time a Big 4 firm reminded us that there’s nothing special anymore about being a Big 4 firm professional The firms, and their partners, are not capitalist eunuchs, immune from perverse incentives that advocates for free markets say, if big enough, can corrupt anyone.
A Happy Story About Housing
/in Pure ContentMy MarketWatch colleague Andrea Riquier took a field trip to Indiana earlier this year on a tip about a group that helps people struggling to get their act together and prepare for home ownership. It’s a nice thing to see, given all the ongoing struggles many still have with jobs, finances and the challenges of this economy, especially in the heartland.
The SEC vs. The PCAOB and Jim Doty: Impasse or Détente?
/1 Comment/in Administration, Audit Firm Management, Audit Quality, Liability Caps, Partner Compensation, You Can Quote Me On ThatJim Doty’s term as chairman of the PCAOB, the audit regulator, expired in October. All summer since I arrived in Washington D.C., leading up to that date and since, there’s been speculation about whether or not SEC Chairwoman Mary Jo White would reappoint him to the job.
McKenna Interviewed On KPMG And FIFA By The Bottom Line Canada
/1 Comment/in Pure Content, The Big 4 And GlobalizationI was interviewed by The Bottom Line magazine in Canada back in June on KPMG’s role as auditor of FIFA.
“Tax Avoidance On An Industrial Scale” Says British MP About PwC’s Luxembourg Work For AIG And Others
/in Independence, Latest, Pure Content, The Big 4 And ConsultingBritish MP Margaret Hodge grilled Kevin Nicholson, of PwC’s UK tax practice, in a Parliament Public Accounts Committee hearing on Monday. You know you’re on your “back foot” when the first thing out of your mouth has to be a denial that you lied under oath. More details about PwC’s tax avoidance scheme for audit client and US government owned AIG.
Update: The Shoemaker’s Children… The Big Four And Their Own Broker-Dealers
/in Audit Quality, Writing for OthersDid you know that each of the Big Four audit firms and some of the next tier also run SEC-registered broker-dealers? You’ll never guess who audits them.
Big Four Takeovers Raise Concerns: McKenna Featured In The Bottom Line
/in The Big 4 And ConsultingThe August issue of The Bottom Line in Canada includes quite a few quotes and a nice color photo of me in a story about the wave of new consulting firm acquisitions by Big Four audit firms all over the world.
Auditors and the Financial Crisis: Part of the Solution or Part of the Problem?
/4 Comments/in Pure Content, The Case Against The AuditorsThis is the text of my speech for the Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics Conference last Friday. The theme of this year conference was “The Institutional Foundation of Capitalism”. Our special session was entitled ‘The New Financial Architecture after Financial Crisis’.
Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac Are Back: More “Adjustments”, More Calls For Reform
/10 Comments/in Pure Content, You Can Quote Me On That“If accounting errors were felonies in California, Fannie Mae would already be serving life under Three Strikes.” That’s what GoingConcern.com said. See what I told TheStreet.com about Fannie Mae’s latest multi-billion dollar “adjustments”.
At The University of Chicago Booth School of Business Capital Ideas Blog: Stock Options Backdating And Stress Tests
/in Writing for OthersI’ve recently published two pieces for Chicago Booth Capital Ideas Blog on stock options backdating and bank stress test disclosure. Take a look!
US Department of Justice v KPMG: Document Shows “Too Few To Fail” Was Opening Premise
/2 Comments/in Attorney-Client Privilege, PCAOB, Pure Content, Regulators, Laws, Standards, Regulations, Sarbanes-Oxley, SEC, The Case Against The AuditorsA new KPMG tax shelter era document surfaced, in original format, that had not yet been cited or quoted from in any media reports. The document tells us that late in the negotiations, June 27, 2005 the DOJ still would not agree to all of KPMG’s terms, including promising not to criminally charge the firm. But the decision to make sure the firm did not “go under” had already been made. KPMG and its Skadden attorneys only had to make sure the DOJ didn’t, in a misguided show of sheer aggressiveness, cause another Arthur Andersen.