Fines to quintuple for badly behaved accountants
Members of accounting body Chartered Accountants ANZ have voted to increase the maximum fine payable for bad behaviour by member firms to $250,000 from $50,000 as part of disciplinary reforms to rebuild public confidence in the sector.
About 6500 members, or 6 per cent of the body’s 136,000-strong membership, voted in favour for 14 reforms that include changes to allow CA ANZ to discipline former members for serious misconduct.
Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand CEO Ainslie van Onselen. Christopher Pearce
“CA ANZ members have voted to further strengthen their Professional Conduct Framework at a time when the profession’s reputation has never been more important,” chief executive Ainslie van Onselen said in a statement.
CA ANZ announced a review of its disciplinary processes last July after members criticised the body for the time it took to investigate and sanction KPMG members over a cheating scandal.
The changes required amendments to the CA ANZ by-laws (or the New Zealand equivalent) that could only be approved by a member vote, which was carried out between September and October. The resolutions passed with approval ratings between 77 per cent and 92 per cent.
The body, which has sanctioned just 17 members from big four accounting firms in the past seven years, is investigating the PwC tax leaks matter. Big four personnel make up 10 per cent, or 13,600, of the body’s 137,000 members.
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