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KPMG is one of the largest professional services firms in the world. KPMG employs 104,000 people in a global network spanning 144 countries. Composite revenues of KPMG member firms in 2005 were $15.7 billion USD. KPMG has three lines of services: audit services, tax services, and advisory services. KPMG is a Big 4 accountancy firm, along with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young and Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.

Name

History

  • In 1979, Klynveld merged with Deutsche Treuhand-Gesellschaft (DTG) and McLintock Main Lafrentz to form Klynveld Main Goerdeler (KMG).
  • In 1987 both firms joined forces in the first mega-merger of large accounting firms and formed KPMG.
  • In 1997, KPMG and Ernst & Young announced that they were to merge, in a maneuver largely seen as a spoiling tactic over the merger of Price Waterhouse and Coopers & Lybrand. However that merger, to form PricewaterhouseCoopers, was granted regulatory approval and the KPMG/Ernst & Young tie-up was later abandoned.
  • In 2001, KPMG divested its US consulting firm through an IPO of KPMG Consulting Inc, which is now called BearingPoint, Inc.. A song that was produced for KPMG, Our Vision of Global Strategy, experienced a brief period of Internet notoriety.
  • In 2002, the UK and Dutch Consulting arms were sold to Atos Origin.
  • In 2003, KPMG divested itself of its legal arm, Klegal.
  • In 2005, KPMG LLP admitted criminal wrongdoing in multi-billion dollar tax shelter fraud.

    • Legal Structure and Executives

    Each national KPMG firm is an independent legal entity and is a member of KPMG International, a Swiss Verein headquartered in the Netherlands.

    KPMG International is led by:

    • Michael D.V. Rake, Chairman, Senior Partner of KPMG in the United Kingdom;
    • Michael P. Wareing, CEO, Partner of KPMG in the United Kingdom;
    • John B. Harrison, Chairman-Asia Pacific Region, Partner of KPMG in China and Hong Kong;
    • Timothy P. Flynn, Chairman-Americas Region, Chairman of KPMG in the United States;
    • Ben van der Veer, Chairman-Europe, Middle East and Africa Region, Chairman of KPMG in the Netherlands.

    Audit Clients

    KPMG member firms serve as the Independent Auditors for a large number of major corporations:

    Tax shelter fraud

    In early 2005, the United States member firm, KPMG LLP, was accused by the United States Department of Justice of fraud in marketing abusive tax shelters. Under an agreement, KPMG LLP admitted criminal wrongdoing in creating fraudulent tax shelters to help wealthy clients avoid $2.5 billion in taxes and agreed to pay $456 million in penalties in exchange for a deferred prosecution agreement. KPMG LLP will not face criminal prosecution as long as it complies with the terms of its agreement with the government.

    Before the settlement, the firm, on the advice of its counsel Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, removed several tax partners and admitted "unlawful conduct" by those partners. The firm agreed to cooperate with DOJ's investigation and help prosecute former partners who had devised and sold the tax shelters. Additionally, the firm hired former U.S. district judge Sven Erik Holmes to monitor its legal and regulatory affairs.

    See also

    External links

    1987 establishments | Public Accountant Firms | Auditing | Companies without an unabbreviated name

    KPMG | KPMG | KPMG | KPMG | 毕马威会计师事务所

     

    This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "KPMG".

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