KPMG

KPMG is a network of professional companies offering financial audit, tax, and advisory services on a global scale. KPMG, aka Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdele, has a global footprint and keeps expanding on its achievements. It is one of the Big Four accountancy firms.

About the Company

KPMG International Limited, often known as KPMG, is a global professional services network. KPMG has its headquarters in the Netherlands, even though it was founded in the United Kingdom. The company’s massive network of affiliates has been involved in legal proceedings and regulatory measures during the past ten years.

History

KPMG’s founders were in the spotlight, leading the industry, as the industrial revolution in the late 18th and 19th centuries aided in making accounting a profession. At the age of 17, William Barclay Peat (the P in KPMG) began his profession as an accountant with Robert Fletcher & Co. Peat advanced fast through the positions in the company, and in 1891 he took over as its president and renamed the company to William Barclay Peat & Co. The American company Marwick, Mitchell & Company was founded in New York City in 1897. James Marwick, the “M” in KPMG, and Roger Mitchell, both Scottish immigrants, founded the business. Although many believed there was no purpose or demand for accountants in the city, the two quickly developed a solid reputation. In 1917, the K in KPMG, Piet Klynveld, launched a modest accountancy firm in Amsterdam. The firm later became Klynveld Kraayenhof & Company(KKC) after Jaap Kraayenhof joins it. Reinhard Goerdeler, the final founding father and the “G” in KPMG, enters the picture in 1953, over 50 years later, when he joins Deutsche Treuhand-Gesellschaft (DTG). Peat and Mitchell crossed the Atlantic in 1911 on their way from Europe to America. The two got along well during the weeklong trip and, by the conclusion of it, had worked out a strategy to work together.

Later, the company changed its name to Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. Sir William Peat led the charge to amend the Institute’s rules to allow for the entrance of women. Ethel Watts, the first female ICAEW accountant in 1924, worked with Sir Harry Peat, his son when she was a student. Peat, Marwick, Mitchell Co (International) changed its organisational structure and name to Peat Marwick International(PMI) in 1978. In 1979, Klynveld Kraayenhof & Co. partnered with DTG and McLintock Main Lafrentz to become Klynveld Main Goerdeler(KMG).A little less than ten years later, in 1986, PMI and KMG combined. When the transaction was made public on January 1, 1987, the joint firms changed their names to KMPG, aka Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler. It represented the biggest merger in the accounting industry’s history at the time. The KPMG infrastructure continued to grow into emerging markets in the 1990s and the 2000s. KPMG companies contributed to developing economies and economic growth in nations including Russia, India, and Myanmar.

Global Operations

Each local KPMG business is a separate legal entity and a part of the U.K. Limited Company KPMG International Limited, which was established in London, United Kingdom. In 2003, KPMG International converted from a Swiss Verein to a co-operative under Swiss law, and in 2020, to a limited corporation. In some jurisdictions, some KPMG member companies are registered as multifunctional entities that also offer legal services. Foreign auditing firms are not allowed to operate in India due to regulations. As a result, KPMG conducts audits in India in the name of BSR & Co, an audit company it purchased. B.S. Raut established the auditing company BSR & Co. in Mumbai. KPMG received approval to operate as an investment bank in India in 1992 when India was obliged to liberalise as a requirement of the IMF and World Bank bailout. It then acquired BSR & Co, using that name to carry out audits throughout India.

Founders – Marwick Mitchell & Co., Klynveld Kraayenhof & Co., William Barclay Peat & Co., Klynveld Main Goerdeler

The company’s four founders, Klynveld, Peat, Marwick, and Goerdeler, are represented by the initials KMPG. In 155 countries today, KPMG’s system of member firms has over 2,27,000 employees dedicated to building on a solid foundation while inspiring confidence and enabling transformation for customers, communities, and society.

CEO – William B. Thomas

Bill Thomas is the CEO and Chairman of KPMG International. With more than ten years of executive-level leadership experience, Bill previously held the positions of CEO and Senior Partner of KPMG in Canada. He has pushed the company’s worldwide strategy through local, regional, and global geographies at every step of his career, balancing realism and innovation to produce tangible outcomes.