Trust battle will go on and on, says PCAOB
US watchdog stresses importance of restoring public confidence in the profession
Accountants’ battle to win back public trust after the spate of recent
financial scandals may never be won, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
chairman William McDonough said today.
Speaking at a Financial Executives International conference in New York, he
said the mission to restore and maintain public trust and confidence was
ongoing.
‘It is not a project which can ever be considered “finished.” You must
maintain your focus on that goal, and the PCAOB must continue to play its role
in keeping that goal front and centre,’ he said.
McDonough admitted that after two PCAOB inspection cycles, identifying and
rooting out all the causes of recent auditing failures and the risk of future
ones was not realistic.
McDonough also pledged to work with international regulators to ensure high
standards across the world.
As of this week, the PCAOB has registered more than 1,586 firms, including
640 non-US firms.