Member Article

KMPG profits slump by 13%

Profits in the big four accountancy firm KPMG have slumped by 13% in the UK, according to the companies latest results.

Despite UK revenue rises of 4% to £1.7bn for the year ending 30th September, profits were down from £403m to £349m, while in Europe, profits fell by over 8%.

The chief operating officer of KMPG’s European leg, Jaap van Everdingen, said that today’s world is entirely different to that of 2008, and that new ideas are crucial to overcome economic obstacles.

He said: “We have continued to invest in high growth areas of the business and in targeted programmes that will boost our offering and the capabilities of our teams.

“In a tough market, we know that we need to differentiate ourselves through the quality of our services and our people.

“I am confident that there remains real room for growth for service providers that get it right.”

In KPMG’s overall report for Europe, the chairman Rolf Nonnenmacher commented: “These are highly uncertain times for the global economy and our profession.

“But by focusing relentlessly on delivering sharper, more relevant services – which meet clients’ immediate and long-term needs and permit our talented people to excel – we are confident we can sustain the growth of KPMG Europe LLP.”

Although the firm admitted its struggles, statistics showed it took on 800 graduates and students last year, as well as continuing its investment strategies in technology and IT businesses.

Simon Collins, UK Senior Partner at KPMG, said: “2012 was a challenging year. We were pleased to grow revenues, and some parts of our business such as Risk Consulting and Management Consulting have seen double digit growth.

“We continue to invest in these areas and in helping our clients prepare for growth. Our profitability fell because of investment and because we maintained high staff levels in some areas of our business in anticipation of a wider economic recovery that failed to materialise.

“Nonetheless we continue to invest for the future. There are signs that market conditions are improving slowly, and the first few months of our new financial year have been encouraging.

“Having put in place a number of measures to reshape our business, I am confident that the right foundations are in place for 2013.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .