PCAOB releases registration list
The US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has released its first list of accountancy firms that have applied for registration.
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US firms which audit public companies in the US are required to register with the board before its 22 October deadline in order to be able to continue preparing and publishing audit reports for these companies. Non-US firms which have worked with businesses listed in the US have a little longer, with their deadline set at 19 April 2004.
So far, registration has been slow with only 91 firms having applied as of last week. Many of the big names were listed, including PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, Deloitte & Touche, Grant Thornton and PKF.
E&Y was on Friday the last of the Big Four to apply for registration with the PCAOB. E&Y has a strong US presence and would suffer significant disruption had it missed the deadline, which is shortened by the PCAOB’s insistence that those wanting registration guaranteed should have their application in by the end of this week.
This is due to the board having 45 days to review each registration.