OFT ‘wait and see’ on Andersen merger

OFT 'wait and see' on Andersen merger

The Office of Fair Trading is adopting a 'wait and see' attitude over the proposed merger between Deloitte & Touche and Andersen in the UK.

While other organisations expressed concerns about the deal, the OFT said it had not been formally contacted by the firms and was waiting to see whether it would be referred to European authorities. Acting on the OFT’s advice, the DTI would have to rule on the merger within four months of the deal’s announcement.

But Andersen senior partner John Ormerod was confident regulators would not block the deal. ‘We have been in discussions with the relevant regulatory bodies and will continue to be. These talks have been going on since our initial discussions with KPMG began.’

The Financial Services Authority has said it would have serious concerns over the merger. A spokesman said: ‘We do have concerns if you have a Big Four – it would be damaging to competition and, perhaps more importantly, for choice of global accounting firms.’

Share

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Resources & Whitepapers

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata
Professional Services

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folders and Embrace Metadata

3y

Why Professional Services Firms Should Ditch Folde...

In the past decade, the professional services industry has transformed significantly. Digital disruptions, increased competition, and changing market ...

View resource
2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professional Services Firms

3y

2 Vital keys to Remaining Competitive for Professi...

In recent months, professional services firms are facing more pressure than ever to deliver value to clients. Often, clients look at the firms own inf...

View resource
Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine
Accounting Firms

Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

3y

Turn Accounts Payable into a value-engine

In a world of instant results and automated workloads, the potential for AP to drive insights and transform results is enormous. But, if you’re still ...

View resource
Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021
Making Tax Digital

Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

3y

Digital Links: A guide to MTD in 2021

The first phase of Making Tax Digital (MTD) saw the requirement for the digital submission of the VAT Return using compliant software. That’s now behi...

View resource