Battered KPMG stays afloat

Crumbling edifice? Some analysts believe KPMG can still bounce back from a succession of scandals implicating the audit firm in state capture. (Alon Skuy/Gallo Images)

KPMG, in the wake of a string of corporate governance scandals, has so far survived an exodus of clients in the public and private sectors, the latest being the auditor general and Absa Barclays. But commentators are split about whether the worst is behind it or whether it has just begun.
Iraj Abedian, an economist and the chief executive of Pan-African Investments and Research Services, said the exodus was evidence that KPMG was “sinking slowly” and it would soon become clear that the company was not salvageable.