Big Four market dominance pays off: EY reports best-ever revenues

EDINBURGH — Big Four audit firm EY has had a bumper year. Its revenues hit a record $35bn, with its auditors making a significant contribution to this income. It's little wonder, then, that EY bosses will do whatever it takes to keep its audit business safe from competition and other threats. There is a perception that KPMG, Deloitte, PwC and EY have an unfair advantage by dominating the audits of big firms and then also getting their tentacles into lucrative consulting work. This cosy position has enabled companies like KPMG to work with the corrupt and turn a blind eye to dodgy financial dealings in the companies of the books they audit. EY boss Mark Weinberger has made an attempt to persuade global business stakeholders that his company and the others in the cartel should be left alone to keep generating lucrative fees. – Jackie Cameron

By Thulasizwe Sithole

The global chief executive of EY has hit back at calls for the Big Four accounting firms to be broken up in response to mounting criticism of the severe lack of competition in the audit market, reports the Financial Times.

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