KPMG increases lead as most prolific stock market auditor
Number of stock market clients audited by KPMG skips up ten in the last quarter, according to Adviser Rankings
KPMG has increased its ‘lead’ as the auditor of the most stock market clients, according to the latest statistics from Adviser Rankings.
The Big Four firm now audits 394 clients, up from 384 in the first quarter of 2014. Deloitte has consolidated its third place by increasing its net client number by eight, to 288. EY, in fourth, has increased by four to 260. PwC is static in second place with 364 clients. KPMG is also the big gainer among the FTSE 350, up three to 90.
The next tier of firms haven’t fared as well. BDO has lost two clients (220) while Grant Thornton has seven fewer, at 210. Baker Tilly was down by a net of two, to 71. The only other gainer among the top ten firms was Crowe Clark Whitehill, up one to 41. BDO and Grant Thornton are still the most prolific auditors of AIM clients, with 161 and 145 respectively, however, PwC, KPMG and Deloitte rank higher based on clients’ market cap.
Big gainers among the next tier of firms included James Cowper, with a net increase of six to 16, after picking up five Octopus Titan venture capital trust audits. Chapman Davis now audits 14 clients, up from 11.