The US stock market watchdog, the SEC, announced on Tuesday that it had fined the auditing firm Ernst & Young $100 million for cheating by some employees during exams to obtain or maintain their license. accountant.
This is the largest financial penalty ever imposed by the SEC on an audit firm, the regulator said.
In 2019, KPMG was fined $50 million in a similar case.
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The SEC reports that between 2017 and 2021, 49 employees of the London-based group sent and/or received answers to the ethics section of the exam to become a chartered accountant.
Hundreds more have cheated in tests necessary to maintain their license.
“
It is simply outrageous that professionals whose job it is precisely to catch clients who cheat have themselves cheated on ethics exams
commented Gurbir Grewal, an SEC official, in a statement.
What's more, Ernst & Young had assured the regulator that it was not aware of these problems even though an internal investigation had confirmed the suspicions and the subject had been discussed between the group's lawyers and the managers.
The SEC also recalls that a similar fraud took place within the group between 2012 and 2015. The case was then handled internally, but "
the cheating continued
", indicates the regulator.
EY recognizes the facts
Ernst & Young, which admitted the facts, undertook to remedy these shortcomings.
"
We have repeatedly and systematically taken steps to strengthen our culture of compliance, ethics and integrity
," Ernst & Young responded in a statement sent to AFP.
“
We will continue to take extensive actions, including disciplinary action, training, monitoring and communications that will further strengthen our commitments going forward
,” the company added.
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In particular, the firm will have to hire two independent consultants, one to assess its rules on ethics and integrity and the other to review the dysfunctions in terms of transparency with the regulators.
Ernst & Young is part of the "
Big Four
" of consulting and auditing alongside KPMG, Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
The group posted a global turnover of 40 billion dollars in the fiscal year 2021. According to several media, it plans to split its consulting and auditing activities.