The Big Four: The Curious Past and Perilous Future of the Global Accounting Monopoly

Abstract

Across the globe, the so-called Big Four accounting and audit firms - Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, and KPMG - are massively influential. Together, they earn more than US$100 billion annually and employ almost one million people. In many profound ways, they have changed how we work, how we manage, how we invest and how we are governed. Introduction -- Part I Infancy -- Glory, Not Infamy: The Medici Bank as a precursor to the Big Four -- Transported: How the Big Four began in the dangerous world of nineteenth-century accountancy -- A Curious Match: The remarkable founders of the Big Four -- Part II Maturity -- Mere Automata: Staking out the Big Four's turf -- An Injudicious Change: Adventures and misadventures in Big Four branding -- Porn Star: The culture of the Big Four -- The Most Average Guys in the Room: Big Four professional values -- Part III The Difficulties of Adulthood -- Unqualified: Auditing as the foundation of the Big Four brands -- Clean: The impairment of Big Four auditing -- Get Ready to Dance: Conflicting interests in Big Four taxation services -- One Four Ten: The Big Four in China -- Part IV The Twilight Years --Disrupted: The obsolescence of Big Four technology -- Conclusion.