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SYDNEY, May 30 (Reuters) - Australian senators will use parliamentary hearings this week to demand accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) name staff and clients who were in on the "big four" firm's misuse of confidential government tax plans. No confidential information was used to help clients pay less tax, it said in the statement on Monday. The cache of emails between 2014 and 2017 discuss how confidential drafts of new rules were used to seek work with U.S. technology companies, among others. The parliamentary committee will hear from the Australian Tax Office and the Tax Practitioners Board and Treasury, which last week referred the matter to police for a possible criminal investigation. Reporting by Lewis Jackson in Sydney; Editing by Sonali PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

In an open letter, acting chief executive Kristin Stubbins said she wanted to apologise on behalf of the firm for "sharing confidential government tax policy information", and said nine partners had been directed to take leave. PwC agreed to stand down from government work any implicated staff a day later. The heart of the issue is that a then-partner on tax at PwC shared confidential information with colleagues while advising the government on new rules to crack down on tax minimisation by multinational companies. Asked on Monday whether the firm should release the names of those with access to confidential information, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called for more transparency pending the police investigation. No clients were involved in any wrongdoing and no confidential information had been used to help clients pay less tax, the firm said.

☆ U.S. debt ceiling deal is a 'classic compromise,' says PwC National Tax Office
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailU.S. debt ceiling deal is a 'classic compromise,' says PwC National Tax OfficeRohit Kumar of the PwC National Tax Office says both sides have "things they can declare victory over."

☆ Factbox: Global firms in Uganda face LGBTQ conundrum
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 29 (Reuters) - Uganda's tough new anti-LGBTQ law, which stipulates the death penalty for "serial offenders", presents a conundrum for multi-nationals wanting to grow in Africa while promoting diversity and inclusion. Here are some global firms that have substantial operations in Uganda and their strategies for LGBTQ inclusion. GOOGLEGoogle, owned by Alphabet (GOOGL.O), launched its first wi-fi network in Uganda in 2015 in the capital, Kampala. On its website, the company says "supporting LGBTQ+ communities has been a priority from the earliest days of Google." EYEY offers services in Uganda including tax and advisory.

☆ Investing in AI: how to avoid the hype
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Naomi Rovnick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

SummarySummary Companies AI boom brings fresh challenge for investorsAI-themed stocks highly valuedStick with big tech not AI stocks - investorsLONDON, May 26(Reuters) - Experienced tech investors are hunting for undervalued opportunities in an over-valued space. Investors are chasing exposure to generative AI, the technology run by ChatGPT that learns from analysing vast datasets to generate text, images and computer code. Businesses are trying to use generative AI to speed up video editing, recruitment and even legal work. GAM's Hawtin said he has also hunted out companies that provide the "picks and shovels," necessary for enabling new AI technology. Amazon's Bedrock service, for example, lets companies customise generative AI models rather than invest in developing them themselves.

☆ Australia says PwC leak of government tax documents may be referred to police
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SYDNEY, May 22 (Reuters) - Australia said on Monday the government will take further steps in response to the leak of government tax plans by accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and that the matter could be referred to the Australian Federal Police. PwC Australia's CEO stepped down this month and the firm has said it is "committed to learning for our mistakes". "I think the PwC experience has been deeply, deeply troubling and we've already taken some steps but we will be taking further steps," Treasurer Jim Chalmers also told ABC Radio in an interview on Monday. "I will have more to say about how we crack down on this behaviour, which is inexcusable, frankly," he said. PwC said this month that former Telstra and Optus CEO Ziggy Switkowski will lead an independent review into the leak and will report his findings and recommendations in September.

☆ Analysis: Australian banks' bid to shake mortgage reliance brings new risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Byron Kaye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"When there's a macroeconomic downturn, it's generally institutional and business lending exposures that are impacted first," he added. For decades, Australian housing finance has significantly outpaced business lending, making home loan margins the engine of profits. A more recent exodus from non-lending retail services like financial advice has further weighted banks' allocation of capital to residential property. The big four banks said in earnings updates this month that their net interest margins peaked in late 2022 and have since narrowed. To hedge against interest rates risks, the Big Four may now chase new services-based revenues from commercial clients in non-lending segments, added Garland.

☆ Over half the Gen Z workers in an Irish survey said remote and hybrid work has benefitted their careers, more than double compared to Gen Xers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Around 55% of Gen Z workers in Ireland felt remote and hybrid work was beneficial to their careers. That's according to a new survey polling how Irish workers feel about remote work since the pandemic. Meanwhile only 23% of 45-54 year old workers surveyed felt that remote and hybrid work has benefitted their careers. Some 57% of all workers felt remote work in Ireland opened them up to better job opportunities. Gen Z workers tend to have higher demands about workplace benefits than their older counterparts and flexible work is high on the list.

SYDNEY, May 15 (Reuters) - PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said the former CEO of its Australia business, who stepped down just last week, will retire from the firm, while the auditor also announced an independent review into a leak of confidential government tax information. Tom Seymour will retire as a partner at the firm on Sept. 30, PwC Australia said in a statement on Monday. According to recent local media reports, another former PwC partner had been banned by Australia's tax practitioners board for sharing government tax plans with other staff at the firm. PwC has confirmed the "unauthorised sharing of confidential tax policy information", but has not named the individuals involved. That includes if the report recommends "exiting" further people and partners from the firm, PwC added.

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Reuters) - A U.S. accounting watchdog found unacceptable deficiencies in audits of U.S.-listed Chinese companies performed by KPMG in China and PricewaterhouseCoopers in Hong Kong, the government agency said on Wednesday. The deficiencies were so great that auditors failed to obtain enough evidence to substantiate companies' financial statements, PCAOB Chair Erica Williams told reporters on Wednesday. KPMG Huazhen in China said in a statement it has taken steps to address the issues the PCAOB had found. With its 2023 work, the PCAOB expects it will have inspected auditors representing 99% of the work in the region. The agency will continue to demand full access to do its work, Williams said.

But some areas of potential compromise emerged after a White House meeting on Tuesday. Deep disagreements remained over competing pressures for spending cuts versus tax increases. Meanwhile, the White House reiterated its backing for legislation speeding government permitting of energy projects by setting maximum timelines. House and Senate Republicans, meanwhile, have said they will not authorize any additional borrowing without an agreement to cut future spending. The last time the nation got this close to default was in 2011 - also with a Democratic president and Senate with a Republican-led House.

Time is tight to avoid a historic, economically destabilizing default, which the Treasury Department has warned could come as soon as June 1, but some areas of potential compromise emerged after a Tuesday White House meeting. Deep disagreements remained over competing pressures for spending cuts versus tax increases. Meanwhile, the White House reiterated its backing for legislation speeding government permitting of energy projects by setting maximum timelines. A White House fact sheet distributed on Wednesday said the administration "supports the important reforms" contained in a bill by Democratic Senator Joe Manchin. House and Senate Republicans, meanwhile, have said they will not authorize any additional borrowing without an agreement to cut spending.

WASHINGTON, May 10 (Reuters) - The U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) found unacceptable deficiencies in audits of U.S.-listed Chinese companies performed by KPMG in China and PriceWaterhouseCoopers in Hong Kong, the government agency said on Wednesday. The U.S. audit watchdog published the findings of its inspections after gaining access to Chinese company auditors' records for the first time last year following more than a decade of negotiations with Chinese authorities. The deficiencies were so great that auditors failed to obtain sufficient evidence to substantiate companies' financial statements, PCAOB Chair Erica Williams told reporters on Wednesday. The two firms represented 40% of the market share of U.S.-listed companies audited by Hong Kong and mainland China firms, she said. While the findings are consistent with what the agency usually discovers when gaining access to a foreign country's audit records for the first time, they will likely raise worries among global investors over the accuracy of U.S.-listed Chinese companies' public financial statements.

☆ This is not like the 2011 debt ceiling crisis, warns fmr. sr. advisor to House Dem leader Jeffries
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThis is not like the 2011 debt ceiling crisis, warns fmr. sr. advisor to House Dem leader JeffriesMichael Hardaway, former senior advisor to House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Rohit Kumar, PwC's national tax office leaders and former deputy chief of staff to Sen. Mitch McConnell, join 'Squawk Box' to discuss the latest in debt ceiling negotiations, and what comes next after President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy failed to reach consensus during Tuesday's meeting.

☆ Audits of Chinese companies by KPMG and PwC full of holes, US watchdog finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —US inspectors, after receiving access to auditors’ books for the first time, discovered significant shortcomings in audits of companies based in China and Hong Kong that are listed on US stock exchanges. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) said Wednesday that it uncovered major “deficiencies” after checking the work of KPMG Huazhen, which is headquartered in mainland China, and PwC’s practice in Hong Kong. Deficiencies were found in 100% of the audits by KPMG Huazhen reviewed and 75% of those from PwC Hong Kong. US regulators had long lobbied for this access, worried that Chinese firms listed on Wall Street were misrepresenting their financial heath. The breakthrough meant that more than 160 Chinese companies avoided being kicked out of the world’s biggest stock market, as US regulators threatened if they weren’t able to inspect their audits.

Reuters spoke to political tacticians and advisers inside and outside the White House and Congress about tell-tale signals that could come from the meeting. The meeting is set to include Biden, McCarthy, Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Democratic minority leader Hakeem Jeffries. As invitees to the White House, they're not expected to bring any other lawmakers. MCCARTHY, BIDEN'S TONE BEFORE AND AFTERHeading into Tuesday's meeting, Biden and McCarthy have cast one another as stubborn, misguided and, at times, dangerous. White House officials say they want this to be a productive meeting, not just Washington theater.

☆ Here are 10 AI-powered tools to help boost your productivity at work
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Sarah Jackson | Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

ChatGPT isn't the only AI-powered tool that can help make your job easier. Here are 10 that can help with everything from generating slideshows to writing emails. Tome: Building slide decksIf you make a lot of PowerPoints for work, the app Tome can help you do it faster. Managing your inbox can be a pretty tedious time-suck, but tools like Remail might help you get through emails more efficiently. Brain.fm, an AI-generated music tool, can help users stay on task.

☆ Bringing A.I. Tools to the Workplace Requires a Delicate Balance
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Kevin J. Delaney | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

If the research plays out in broader practice, that could potentially lead some companies to invest more in junior staff members, while going lighter on more expensive workers who have been around longer. Some companies are already starting to make staffing decisions based on the anticipated impact of A.I. IBM recently said it was slowing or stopping hiring for some back-office roles, such as human-resources functions, that could be replaced by A.I. will raise customer expectations, said Bivek Sharma, the chief technology officer for PwC Global Tax and Legal Services. start-up creating tools for lawyers, to roll out a chat A.I.

☆ UK listing shakeup requires double dose of hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Neil Unmack | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Financial Conduct Authority isn’t the only watchdog to water down its listing rules, but it has more reasons than most to up its game. The UK prides itself on being a financial hub, but accounted for just 5% of global IPOs between 2015 and 2020. That’s why the FCA is proposing to replace a fiddly two-tier system of standard and “premium” listing rules with a single class. CONTEXT NEWSThe UK Financial Conduct Authority on May 2 published a series of proposals designed to encourage companies to list in the UK. The new framework would remove many investor protections currently required under the premium listing category.

☆ What King Charles' coronation means for the UK economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

But the UK economy as a whole could suffer as workers take an extra day’s holiday. John Lewis' Coronation Lewis Bear. John Lewis & PartnersDepartment store John Lewis has had to limit in-store purchases of its Coronation Lewis Bear to two per household, and the teddy is out of stock online. For the coronation, UK luxury brands “have procured unique merchandise at all levels of the economy and we’re seeing people buying it, particularly Americans and EU customers,” she added. (The coronation holiday will be the third holiday Monday this month.)

Several analysts, industry executives and investors said they believe the March banking crisis has set conditions for a long-predicted round of industry consolidation to finally happen. We've also been approached by some big bulge bracket banks that are also looking to acquire the regional banks." Some bank deals have been stuck for months waiting for approvals. And Monday's deal shows larger banks with deeper pockets are better placed than mid-sized lenders, according to Jefferies analysts. "This may have precluded other regional bank bidders from making the math work as well as it does for JPM," they wrote.

☆ The Biden tax proposals that could hit baby boomer, family businesses
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Cheryl Winokur Munk | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

President Joe Biden's 2024 budget proposals contain several proposals that could hit small businesses right where it hurts — their wallets. Here are five provisions business owners should be aware of in President Biden's budget:A higher capital gains tax rate would be bad for business sellers. Biden is proposing that the corporate tax rate be increased to 28% from 21%. The majority of small businesses are pass-through businesses that are not subject to the corporate income tax, but for companies that are, the increase would be meaningful, tax experts said. Biden's proposal would increase the 3.8% net investment income tax rate on small business income over $400,000 to 5%.

☆ PricewaterhouseCoopers to Pour $1 Billion Into Generative AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Angus Loten | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

In addition to embedding generative AI in its own operations, PwC hopes to advise other companies on how to use the technology. Photo: Leon Neal/Getty ImagesPricewaterhouseCoopers LLP plans to invest $1 billion in generative artificial intelligence technology in its U.S. operations over the next three years, working with Microsoft Corp. and ChatGPT-maker OpenAI to automate aspects of its tax, audit and consulting services. The accounting and consulting giant said the multiyear investment, announced Wednesday, includes funding to recruit more AI workers and train existing staff in AI capabilities, while targeting AI software makers for potential acquisitions.

McCarthy told reporters in the U.S. Capitol. Biden said Congress must raise the debt ceiling without conditions, as it did three times under Republican President Donald Trump. It could be difficult for Congress to raise the debt ceiling before then if House Republicans are unable to unite behind a proposal, analysts say. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned on Tuesday that a failure to raise the debt ceiling would trigger a "financial catastrophe" that would sharply raise the cost of borrowing money. Manhattan Institute senior fellow Brian Riedl gives House Republicans a 50-50 chance of passing the legislation this week.

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