SEC considering a $50M fine against KPMG

It will take a bigger stack of currency than shown above if the SEC follows through with what they are considering. Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.

The Wall Street Journal reported on June 13, 2019 that the SEC is considering a fine of $50,000,000 against the Big 4 firm KPMG for it gaining access to the highly confidential list of audits scheduled for inspection by PCAOB.

Reporter Dave Michaels broke the story for WSJ:  KPMG to Pay as Much as $50 Million to Settle SEC Probe.

The $50M fine, if levied, would tie with the previous ‘record’ for largest fine of $50M against Deloitte & Touche back in 2005 over its audit of Adelphia Communications. In the same year KPMG was hit with a $22.5M fine for its audit of Xerox.

Article says the SEC says Adelphia had a major fraud which proper audit procedures would have detected and Xerox overstated net income over four years.

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