A Requiem for Independent Audits: The Last Days of Theranos
By Francine • Oct 21st, 2018Looks like the Theranos investors decided that audits are worthless, even if the cost is some “immaterial to them” fraud losses.
Archive for the ‘The Case Against The Auditors’ Category
Update: KPMG: The Indictments
By Francine • Aug 27th, 2018The mystery outside consulting firm that helped KPMG analyze the data Brian Sweet andCynthia Holder allegedly brought over from the PCAOB is no longer a mystery. It’s Palantir. It is still a mystery why any firm like KPMG, who touts a new KPMG MAcc focused on data analytics, would have to hire an outside firm to crunch data. That’s unless KPMG is not the only firm that used this outside consultant, and the effort to improve inspection results was a joint effort of more than one firm. I’d love to hear more about why KPMG needed Palantir. Leave a comment here, one I can leave unposted, if you wish to communicate confidentially or DM me on Twitter @retheauditors for Signal encrypted confidential messaging instructions.
Another Update on the Case of FDIC v PricewaterhouseCoopers re: Colonial Bank
By Francine • Apr 8th, 2018On February 28 the US Justice Department fined Deloitte & Touche LLP $149.5 million for alleged fraud against the government related to its role as the independent outside auditor of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. Also: The damages phase of the FDIC v. PwC case regarding Colonial Bank is set to begin in Washington DC on March 20.
More on KPMG and the Precedents for Possible Punishment
By Francine • Apr 23rd, 2017Why 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.
Interesting Disclosures During TBW v. PwC Pre-Trial Period
By Francine • Sep 26th, 2016The TBW v. PwC trial gave the public quite a few interesting disclosures about the audit industry and PwC, including some some pointing to how the firms’ finances, in this case PwC, work.
TBW Plan Trustee v. PwC: A Look at What Led To It and What’s Next
By Francine • Sep 25th, 2016Here’s a brief look at the TBW Plan Trustee v. PwC trial, what led to it and what’s next.
Best Case Yet For Publishing Audit Partner Names: Grant Thornton’s Koeppel
By Francine • Dec 14th, 2015The PCAOB will vote on final rule based on its proposal on Tuesday Dec 15. If audit partner names were published in the audit report, or anywhere, the public, audit committees, investors and journalists could stop lousy auditors in their tracks. Melissa Koeppel of Grant Thornton is the best case yet for making audit partner names and their engagement history, disciplinary history, and litigation history public.
PCAOB’s Franzel Speaks to AAA; Are Auditors’ ICFR Opinions Just “Busy-Work”?
By Francine • Aug 9th, 2015Auditor opinions on ICFR are not only not being done well, they are not producing warnings for investors and regulators that a material error and restatement is likely. Worse than that, when auditors get them wrong they whitewash their mistakes.
When Auditors Get Mixed Up In M&A, Smaller Clients Get Hurt
By Francine • Feb 3rd, 2015A new study says smaller public companies are paying a premium for the prestige of a Big Four auditor but the auditors are dangling small clients as chum for their large acquisitive shark audit clients.
Piling Up For PwC
By Francine • Nov 18th, 2014Update: The PCAOB is investigating PwC for its tax avoidance advice to Caterpillar, the Wall Street Journal is reporting. One down, more than 100+ PwC audit clients advised via Luxembourg to go…
Francine McKenna (@retheauditors) is the Transparency Reporter at MarketWatch.com, a Dow Jones publication, where her work is also featured frequently in the Wall Street Journal. McKenna had more than twenty-five years of experience in consulting and professional services including tenure at two Big 4 firms, both in the US and abroad before becoming a journalist. Look for her prior columns, 