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CPA Licensure
Share Your Input on CPE Standards by Dec. 16 [NASBA]
NASBA and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) have released an exposure draft of proposed revisions to the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programs and are inviting public comment through December 16, 2025.
Big 4
The Big Four are choosing profit over promotion [AccountancyAge]
New data reveals that the Big Four: Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG have collectively promoted just 179 new partners for the 2025 cycle. This represents a five-year low, a sharp contraction from the post-pandemic optimism of 2022 when 276 new leaders were elevated. For the ambitious Director or Senior Manager reading this, the headline figures are sobering. But for the firms themselves, this is a calculated act of self-preservation. Faced with a “consulting crunch” and the uncertain spectre of AI, the Big Four are circling the wagons to protect their most sacred metric: Average Profit Per Partner (PEP).
Academic Research
Representation and Retention: New Study Explores Career Paths in Accounting [Bentley University]
As corporate America questions the future of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, new research from Bentley’s Rani Hoitash, John E. Rhodes Professor of Accounting, and Eric Krause, PhD ’25 offers clear evidence of why they matter. In a study published in The Accounting Review, Hoitash, Krause and their co-authors examine how gender, race and ethnicity shape careers in public accounting. Using employment data from LinkedIn, they analyzed the work histories of more than 100,000 auditors who began their careers in large U.S. firms. Their data captured not only when employees left, but also demographic details of the organizations they joined next — allowing them to draw a connection between workplace diversity and departure decisions.
News
Watch out for Big Law’s latest competitor: accountancy firms [Financial News]
Watch out for Big Law’s latest competitor: accountancy firms. For private equity funds that have poured into the accountancy sector, a key growth driver is now the expansion of their legal services.
Jeffrey Epstein’s accountant of 22 years raised alarm bells at JPMorgan. Now Congress wants answers. [Business Insider]
Congressional investigators interested in how Epstein made and spent his money — and whether banks ignored red flags that should have alerted them to sex-trafficking — now have Harry Beller in their crosshairs. In lawsuits involving Epstein, Beller comes across as something of a financial Forrest Gump — turning up repeatedly in the paper trail. He hasn’t been named as a defendant in any of the lawsuits, but his name crops up on incorporation papers for Epstein’s web of companies, on Ghislaine Maxwell’s tax forms, on checks, and on cash withdrawal records for Epstein’s bank accounts, which for years were held by JPMorgan Chase.
Ernst & Young Fails to Halt $250 Million Army Accounting Award [Bloomberg Law]
Guidehouse Inc. can move forward with a $250 million maximum value contract to provide the US Army with accounting, auditing solutions, and change management support services, the GAO said in a decision released Friday. Protester Ernst & Young LLP didn’t show that the Army conducted an improper corrective action, following an earlier protest, by not allowing bidders to make wholesale changes to their bids, the US Government Accountability Office said.
Sudbury Business Owner Pleaded Guilty To Paying Employee $1.6M Under The Table, USAO [Patch]
Charles D. Katz, 63, the owner of accounting firm CD Katz LLC and real estate firm Gebsco Realty Corporation, was charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and two counts of loan fraud. Katz and an employee, who served as the Director of Corporate Services at his accounting firm and the CEO of his real estate firm, agreed that he would pay the employee off the books. This was so the employee would have tax-free income and that Katz would have lower employment taxes.
Tax
AICPA warns that merger of IRS offices would ‘confuse’ taxpayers [Journal of Accountancy]
The AICPA opposes the proposed merger of the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) and the Return Preparer Office (RPO) “because it would inappropriately consolidate credentialed and uncredentialed return preparers under OPR, create potential conflicts of interest, and divert resources from the primary role of OPR,” the AICPA wrote in the letter, dated Nov. 14.
Unpaid state taxes soar, and Nebraska auditor questions why [Nebraska Examiner]
The amount of state tax obligations Nebraska taxpayers have evaded has soared beyond $310 million, growing by 15% this past year, according to a letter released Monday by the Nebraska State Auditor. “Worse yet, they are being allowed to get away with it,” Auditor Mike Foley said in a statement. The “staggering” amount, according to Foley, is a cumulative result of unpaid corporate and individual income taxes, sales and use taxes, partnership income taxes and withholding taxes.
Audit
AI and the audit: Finance leaders strongly support forward-thinking firms [Journal of Accountancy]
When finance leaders go shopping for audit solutions, their preference for firms leaning into artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technologies is growing, right along with their trust. Nearly all (97%) of leaders said they are willing to pay more to partner with audit firms that leverage advanced technologies, according to BDO’s Audit Innovation Survey. The survey canvassed 210 senior finance leaders — predominantly CFOs and finance directors at public and private U.S. companies — and found that 81% have greater trust in audit firms that invest in and actively use advanced technology, an 18-percentage-point increase from the first survey a year ago.
OpenAI’s US auditor is Deloitte: report [Seeking Alpha]
On Wednesday, investor Michael Burry, who has taken to the social media X platform to express his concerns about the artificial intelligence spending boom, openly pondered which firm was auditing OpenAI’s books. “OpenAI is the linchpin here,” Burry wrote. “Can anyone name their auditor?”
Fail to understand why NASBA still struggles with AI inclusion in CPE standards.