Archive for the ‘EY’ Category

Compliance Week 2009 Day 1: What A Difference A Day Makes

By Francine • Jun 4th, 2009

It was a great first day yesterday. I’ve been telling Matt Kelly, Editor of Compliance Week, that this year is better than ever. One profound change is the Twitter presence this year. Last year I was the only one Twittering, Matt did not yet have blogs on the Compliance Week site, and fewer people knew or cared what I was doing or why. This year, I share the front row at every presentation (and the backchannel) with several bloggers/Twitterers.

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It’s A Race To The Finish – But There Are No Winners

By Francine • May 11th, 2009

Not so long ago, Dennis Howlett and I went public with a bet:

Which Big 4 audit firm is the next to fail?

Dennis believes that I’m betting on PwC as next to fail. I don’t honestly remember committing to that, but I’m willing to go with it for the sake of argument. This is in spite of the fact that the other Big 4 have plenty to worry about and the next tier firms are in no way ready for prime time.

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If It’s Not One Thing, It’s Another – Auditors Getting Sued Over Madoff

By Francine • Dec 18th, 2008

The “victims” of the Bernie Madoff scandal are not taking their losses laying down. Why are so many suits suddenly being brought against the auditors of the funds that invested on behalf of their clients in the Madoff funds?

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Hedge Funds And Their Auditors – It’s Good To Be Aggressive

By Francine • Nov 11th, 2008

Every once and a while someone asks me, 
“fm, how do you keep up with all the news, the stories?  How do you know all this stuff?”
Well…Although I have been accused of conceit, presumption, being “too smart,” being too quick to draw conclusions, painting a whole firm black on very little basis, precociousness, general egotistical behavior [...]

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What The Auditors Saw – An Update on Société Générale

By Francine • Oct 14th, 2008

Prentice: It’s a fascinating theory, sir, and cleverly put together. Does it tie in with known facts?Rance: That need not cause us undue anxiety. Civilizations have been founded and maintained on theories which refused to obey fact.“What The Butler Saw”Joe Orton, 1969

Kerviel’s lawyers question Société Générale accountants
PARIS: Jérôme Kerviel, blamed by Société Générale for the [...]

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Latest Updates: My Clients Are Failing, My Clients Are Failing

By Francine • Oct 7th, 2008

Update:
Chicago’s John “Dr. J.” Najarian co-founder of OptionMONSTER on the need for transparency when the assets bought by the US government are eventually sold.
On YouTube.

Part 2 from Jon Najarian is here.

 
I have been updating this information throughout the weekend as other banks failed and other deals have been done.
A summary of “the mother of all [...]

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"Rogue" Partners At KPMG Christchurch

By Francine • Jul 15th, 2008

Here in the US, we are accustomed to the concept of a national practice  for our Big 4 firms.  Although each of the local offices, in each city, in each state has a Managing Partner and local partners, the firms are rarely separate legal entities.  A partner is a partner of the National firm, not [...]

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And The IRS Has What Leverage Over The Firms?

By Francine • Jul 7th, 2008

I laughed out loud when a Google Alert pointed me to the FT article excerpted below. 

I find this solicitation by the US Internal Revenue Service quite ironic given that four of the six firms mentioned have had serious, and I mean serious, issues with the IRS related to their aiding and abetting the development of [...]

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Approved! All Together Now – EY To Be One Firm (Except US, Of Course)

By Francine • Jun 3rd, 2008

Ernst & Young Completes Groundbreaking Globalization Move
EY Partners Overwhelmingly Approve the Creation of EMEIA
LONDON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Ernst & Young today announces that its partners across Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa have overwhelmingly approved the proposed integration of its country practices into a single EMEIA Area.
The new Area will be a US$11 billion [...]

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SocGen And PwC – They Still Don’t Know Jack…

By Francine • May 26th, 2008

As those of you who follow my Twitters know, last Wednesday I had the good fortune to have dinner with our Governor and a few other State of Illinois executives and local entrepreneurs. Most were in the technology arena, as is my client, who I was there to support, cajole, nudge and share a [...]

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