Deloitte Contacts Top Indian Officials In Bid To Persuade Them Against Likely Ban Over Alleged Omissions In Auditing IL&FS
[ By Bobby Anthony ]Top Indian officials in New Delhi are believed to have been approached by Deloitte’s global CEO Punit Renjen recently in what is being seen as a bid to persuade them against any probable ban over alleged omissions in the firm’s auditing of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS).The development has come after the government recently asked the National...
Top Indian officials in New Delhi are believed to have been approached by Deloitte’s global CEO Punit Renjen recently in what is being seen as a bid to persuade them against any probable ban over alleged omissions in the firm’s auditing of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS).
The development has come after the government recently asked the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to ban Deloitte Haskins & Sells as well as BSR & Associates, which is part of the KPMG network, for their alleged roles in concealing bad loans at IL&FS, which defaulted on its payments.
Observers believe that the Indian audit industry could face a crisis if the NCLT agrees with the government’s demand to ban firms for shortcomings, especially if a couple of ‘Big Four’ audit firms are banned.
Significantly, the Big Four audit firms in India, including their partners, have a client base of more than 300 listed Indian companies. They also employ a huge number of personnel in their offices based in India.
According to industry estimates, these companies may account for practically about 40% of the market capitalization of listed companies in India.
It may be recalled that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had banned PwC and its associate audit firms in the Satyam Computers fraud case.