Dinkun Chen
The Accounting and Financial Reporting Council of Hong Kong imposed a $300 million fine on PwC and prohibited the firm from taking on audit requests from new public clients for a period of six months.
In a resolution with another regulator, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the firm consented to contribute $1 billion to a compensation fund for independent minority shareholders of Evergrande.
The SFC indicated that this agreement completely and conclusively settles the issue without PwC acknowledging any liability. The regulator stated it would refrain from additional actions against the company if it adhered to all conditions of the agreement.
PwC faced scrutiny from Chinese officials after initiating an inquiry into financial fraud involving Evergrande. In 2024, Beijing penalized the developer upon finding that its primary branch, Hengda Real Estate, had greatly exaggerated its revenue for two years (2019 and 2020). PwC's Shanghai-based subsidiary, PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian, acted as the auditor for Hengda during this time.
source: bloomberg.com
In a resolution with another regulator, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the firm consented to contribute $1 billion to a compensation fund for independent minority shareholders of Evergrande.
The SFC indicated that this agreement completely and conclusively settles the issue without PwC acknowledging any liability. The regulator stated it would refrain from additional actions against the company if it adhered to all conditions of the agreement.
PwC faced scrutiny from Chinese officials after initiating an inquiry into financial fraud involving Evergrande. In 2024, Beijing penalized the developer upon finding that its primary branch, Hengda Real Estate, had greatly exaggerated its revenue for two years (2019 and 2020). PwC's Shanghai-based subsidiary, PricewaterhouseCoopers Zhong Tian, acted as the auditor for Hengda during this time.
source: bloomberg.com
