PCAOB

Board members will host a series of five in-person forums for small audit firms in Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, Miami, and Jersey City.

Total enforcement activity reached its highest level since 2017 and monetary penalties doubled compared to the record set in 2022.

The proposal would direct firms to provide more information, like involvement of partners and auditor turnover, to investors.

Rampant cheating on internal training exams occurred from 2017 to 2022 and the firm lied about its knowledge of it, the PCAOB said.

The order also requires a review of PwC's independence-related quality-control policies and procedures, and extra training.

The three KPMG Huazhen partners were docked a total of $150,000 for turning a blind eye to U.S. auditing standards.

A proposed rule would limit how audit firms tout their PCAOB registration in marketing to clients and potential clients.

Withum was fined $2 million, while Baker Tilly and Mazars were fined $80,000 and $60,000, respectively, for rules violations.