Deloitte has shown ‘modest’ improvements in audit quality in this year’s audit quality inspection (AQI) reviews, but has performed better than other Big Four firms

EY has demonstrated improvements in audit quality in the latest round of audit quality inspection (AQI) reports and is the Big Four firm which came closest to meeting the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) target of 90% of FTSE 350 audits requiring no more than limited improvements

Revenue recognition and a failure to challenge management assumptions were flagged as ongoing issues with audit at mid-tier firm BDO, found this year’s FRC audit quality inspections (AQI) reviews

KPMG has started to turn around its audit business with an improvement in the quality of audits reviewed in the 2018/19 audit quality inspection (AQI) reports, although inspectors criticised a lack of management challenge and quality control, reports Sara White

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has highlighted a ‘notable’ decline in audit quality at PwC in its annual quality inspection (AQI) particularly in relation to the firm’s FTSE 350 audits, where the number judged to be good has fallen to 65%, well below the regulator’s 90% target

Mid-tier firm Mazars, which was recently hired as auditor of Goldman Sachs’ European arm, has seen a decline in audit quality over the past year with AQI inspectors criticising the firm for not fully addressing earlier issues

The Financial Reporting Council has made a scathing attack on the quality of UK audit in the latest 2019 Audit Quality Inspections reports, with one in four audits inspected requiring significant improvement. Sara White reports

Deloitte has been fined £6.5m by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) over its auditing of Serco Geografix Ltd, the company which has recently settled fraud and false accounting charges under a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO)

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has issued a revision of Practice Note 19: The audit of banks and building societies, to reflect changes to auditing standards, and a significant rewrite to reflect the latest ISA 540 on disclosures 

FTSE 250 Swiss mining group Ferrexpo has named MHA MacIntyre Hudson  as its new auditor, following Deloitte’s resignation from the position earlier this year amid concerns about delays to an independent investigation into a possible ‘misappropriation’ of corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds

Outsourcing giant Serco Group is set to pay £23m including costs under a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over fraud and false accounting charges

In this month’s audit updates, fines for PwC over Redcentric, KPMG refuses to retender $2.2m Cineworld audit, ICAEW finds one in four audits sub-standard, Gama Aviation ditches Grant Thornton and the Financial Reporting Council gets a new head of audit inspections on loan from the Bank of England