Partner bonuses rise at major accountancy group, despite slowdown
Profits at accountancy giant KPMG have fallen despite revenues growing by 9% and its partners receiving an average annual bonus of £746k.
Despite bonus’ increasing by 4% in comparison to last year, KPMG partners are the lowest paid of the Big Four. EY handed out an average of £761k, while PwC paid out £906k and Deloitte gave £1.06m.
KPMG saw revenue increase to £2.95m in a year where it was fined due to audit failures and saw its deal advisory sales decrease by 6% due to a slowdown in the global deals market. Its auditing of collapsed construction firm Carillion resulted in a £21m fine in October.
Surplus at the company came in at £364m – down from £449m last year, with the firm blaming a 17% increase in staff costs and increase in headcount for the decrease.
More than 1,400 colleagues are based in the Midlands and last year KPMG promoted 83 staff across its Birmingham and Nottingham offices, with a further 156 joining the firm as graduates and apprentices. With this growth, the firm has announced plans to invest in its Birmingham office at One Snowhill.
Revenue was boosted thanks to an increase in client demand for advice on tax transformation and the use of Generative AI, as well as transformation projects including digitisation. The firm’s audit practice grew 19%, driven by expanded reporting requirements.
Andy Bostock, KPMG UK’s Birmingham Office Senior Partner, said: “It has been fantastic to see many of our people progressing into new roles and being able to welcome new colleagues into the profession. Looking ahead, we’ll be investing in refreshing our Birmingham office to better suit the needs of our growing colleague population and providing them with a comfortable space to collaborate and support our clients.
“As a major employer, we are proud of the role we play in training the next generation of industry leaders. We’re committed to breaking down the barriers that hinder access to our profession and supporting the talent of tomorrow.
“Throughout the year we’ve been hosting school and college students via our Opening Doors to Opportunities programme to help them consider their own career paths.
“The West Midlands region is continuing to evolve, and we’ve seen some significant developments in our transport infrastructure, which will go a long way in expanding investment routes.
“Ongoing economic and geopolitical pressures presented challenges for the deals market over the past year, but businesses in the region are resilient and the pipeline of clients under engagement is slowly growing, hinting at a more positive dealmaking landscape to come.”
