Audit Alarm Bells: Big Four and Global Networks Resist ICAI’s Draft Rulebook Overreach

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News Brief: A regulatory storm is building within India's professional services industry with the Big Four of EY, Deloitte, PwC, and KPMG, and more than 170 global networks, countering the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India's (ICAI) draft Guidelines for Overseas Networks. The draft guidelines to govern multi-disciplinary advisory services in connection with foreign associations have raised alarm on confidentiality, operational viability, and overreach of regulation.

Industry Flashpoints:

The bill mandates extensive disclosures, such as Indian partners and employees' civil, criminal, and disciplinary record during the past five years

Firms argue that such requests are excessive, unrelated to network operations, and risk infringing on global confidentiality standards

Uncertainty around terms like "constituents" and "networks" may force disclosure by unrelated worldwide affiliates

Operational Problems:

Disclosure Dilemma:
Form BO and Form DO require complete turnover and legal case reporting by overseas affiliates

Businesses are concerned that this can lead to excessive compliance expenses as well as friction with other governments

Scope Creep:
ICAI's attempt to extend its ethical and operational standards to foreign bodies is seen as regulatory overreach

Critics allege the guidance obfuscates the separation between audit and consulting, and could destabilize the multidisciplinary model.

Impact on Indian Companies:
Smaller Indian firms that rely on international alliances fear to lose access to overseas networks

The scheme may jeopardize India's plans to create its own world-class advisory giants

Voices from the Field:
Grant Thornton Bharat CEO Vishesh Chandiok warned that the draft risks to kill Indian Big Four dream

Senior partners in multinational corporations challenged the feasibility of reporting constituent-by-turnover across non-related geographies

Indian companies also raised the lack of distinction between regulated and unregulated bodies and the lack of facilitating provisions

Strategic Implications:
The stalemate could delay ICAI's efforts to place local and foreign firms on an equal footing

It would also involve re-evaluating India's regulatory approach to global professional networks

A revised draft or stakeholder consultation would be necessary in an effort to balance transparency and operational viability

Sources: The Economic Times, The420.in, Financial Express, PDICAI.org