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SYDNEY, May 30 (Reuters) - Australia's Treasury department may not renew a A$1 million audit contract with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) when it ends this year, an official told a senate hearing amid a scandal over the firm's misuse of confidential government tax plans. Amid calls to ban the firm from lucrative government contracts, Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy told senators on Tuesday the breach was "clearly disturbing" and the department would review a PwC audit contract worth almost A$1 million that expires at the end of this year. PwC did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the audit contract. Treasury officials told senators confidentiality agreements had been updated and the department had written to PwC and 25 other firms to ask whether their governance processes were suitable for confidential tax consultations in the wake of the PwC tax leak. Reporting by Lewis Jackson in Sydney; Editing by Sonali PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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.

☆ 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.

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.

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