Berkeley Group Holdings has announced it has chosen KPMG to replace PwC as its auditor, ending a 29-year relationship with the firm which has handled the audit since the property developer was first listed in 1984.
The announcement completes a hat trick of audit client losses for PwC so far this month, which has seen the Marks & Spencer audit go to Deloitte and KPMG also taking over at Unilever.
In its statement, Berkeley said the decision had been made 'in accordance with evolving best practice', as a result of which the audit committee has undertaken a competitive tender process for the audit of the company and its subsidiaries for the year ending 30 April 2014.
The statement also said: 'The board would like to thank PwC for their constructive and professional approach to the audit of Berkeley over the last 29 years.' KPMG's appointment is to be confirmed at the 2014 AGM.
Earlier this year the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) announced an investigation into whether PwC acted independently when it audited Berkeley's financial statements for the year ended 30 April 2012.;p>
The FRC said its inquiry was as a result of former PwC audit partner, Glynn Barker, joining the Berkeley board as a non-executive director in January 2012 after a 35-year career with the Big Four firm. He became chair the remuneration committee and a member of the audit committee, having retired from PwC in December 2011.
The watchdog is believed to be looking at whether the timing of the appointment breached rules, and whether Barker was involved in the chain of command in the audit process in the two years prior to his retirement. While Barker did not take part in the audit himself, he did conduct an independent review of the audit and provide feedback on the firm's performance.
At the time the investigation was announced in September, PwC said it takes its independence matters issues seriously and said the firm would fully cooperate with the FRC's enquiries.
According to Berkeley's 2013 annual report, the company paid PwC £200,000 in audit fees and the same amount again for non-audit services in the last financial year.
