KPMG Netherlands fined record $25M by PCAOB for exam cheating

KPMG

KPMG Netherlands agreed to pay a record $25 million penalty levied by the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) for allegedly allowing widespread cheating by employees on internal training exams and misinforming regulators about the misconduct.

Improper answer sharing occurred at KPMG Netherlands over a five-year period, and the firm made multiple misrepresentations to the PCAOB about its knowledge of the misconduct, the regulator said Wednesday in a press release. The PCAOB conducted a joint investigation into the matter with its Dutch counterpart, the Dutch Authority of the Financial Markets, which placed KPMG Netherlands under enhanced supervision, according to a press release.

The PCAOB also fined the firm’s former head of assurance, Mark Hogeboom, $150,000 for violating a PCAOB rule that prohibits knowingly or recklessly contributing to violations of agency rules. He was censured and permanently barred from being an associated person of a registered public accounting firm.

lock iconTHIS IS MEMBERS-ONLY CONTENT. To continue reading, choose one of the options below.