The last two years have seen a striking acceleration in the level of fines imposed on accountants and auditors by the FRC. Between January 2009 and March 2015, the fines levied by the FRC disciplinary tribunal exceeded £1m on only one occasion. In 2013, the tribunal imposed a £14m fine on Deloitte in the MG Rover case, which was reduced to £3m on appeal.

Since March 2015, there have been five fines over that threshold, four of which have been imposed since August 2016. Two of the recent fines, in October 2016 and May 2017 respectively, were at record levels of £4m and £5m.  

The purpose of the FRC’s disciplinary arm is to investigate cases which raise or appear to raise important issues affecting the public interest. But does this justify the marked difference between the fines that its disciplinary tribunal imposes and those imposed by other professional tribunals, such as the ICAEW’s? And does it explain the stark increase in fines in recent years?

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