KPMG on journey of renewal - chair at opening of new Cape Town office

KPMG Southern Africa officially opened its new office in Cape Town earlier this week.

According to a statement issued by the company, this is an important milestone in the ongoing renewal and rebuilding of the firm.

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The new office is located in the new The Halyard building on the Foreshore in the central business district. KPMG chair professor Wiseman Nkuhlu said the office opening comes at an important time for the organisation "as it undertakes its journey of renewal in order to rebuild trust and restore growth".

"We are committed to Cape Town as a regional business centre. The new office environment complements KPMG's collaborative and innovative work approach as the firm continuously works to enhance its service offerings," he said.

Nkuhlu added that the new location and enhanced operational efficiencies would help KPMG Southern Africa to grow and develop to keep pace with its clients' needs.

KPMG South Africa has released a 45-page report laying out the measures it adopted as it tries to recover from the reputational damage it suffered after the revelation of irregular audit practices by some of its partners.

• READ: KPMG says it is on renewal path after series of audit scandals

In March this year Fin24 reported that KPMG's annual integrated report for 2018 showed the auditor's integrity took a knock following media scrutiny about its role in publishing the so-called SA Revenue Service (SARS) "rogue unit" report (the findings of which it has since retracted); its role in the auditing of Gupta-affiliated entities; as well as the alleged improper conduct of at least two of its partners in the audit of VBS Mutual Bank.

In September 2017 KPMG's top leadership quit following an investigation by KPMG International into the work it had done for SARS and Gupta-linked companies. Businesses then started to cut ties with the auditor.

The company was booted out of Business Leadership South Africa in September 2017 but readmitted in October last year.

In its 2018 Integrated Report KPMG said it had set out to start winning back the public trust it lost by detailing what remedial actions it undertook over the past 18 months.

These included returning the R23m fee to SARS for the "rogue unit" report it produced; various leadership changes made; and streamlining operations. At the time KPMG also indicated that it is in the process of redistributing the R47.8m in fees received from work for Gupta-related entities.