Major scandals involving Deloitte, PwC, EY and KPMG — including audit failures, corporate collapses, regulatory investigations, confidentiality breaches, conflicts of interest, whistleblower allegations and litigation.
The Big Four — Deloitte, PwC, EY and KPMG — occupy an unusual position in the global economy.
They audit many of the world’s largest companies, advise corporations and governments, and operate international networks spanning audit, tax, consulting, deals and technology. Their work gives them access to some of the most sensitive financial and commercial information in business.
That position has also placed the firms at the centre of some of the most significant corporate and professional-services scandals of recent decades.
Big4News tracks these cases through reporting, analysis, dedicated scandal hubs and detailed timelines. This page brings those resources together.
Start here: Global Big Four Scandal Timeline
Global Big Four Scandal Timeline →
Global Big Four Scandal Timeline
A chronological record of major scandals involving Deloitte, PwC, EY and KPMG around the world.
Where a case develops over several years, subsequent investigations, penalties, settlements, court proceedings and leadership consequences are incorporated into the original entry, making the timeline a starting point for understanding both what happened and what followed.
Where Big4News has developed more extensive coverage, the timeline links through to dedicated scandal timelines and hubs.
KPMG Australia audit-leaks scandal
KPMG Australia Audit Leaks Scandal →
The KPMG Australia scandal developed from whistleblower allegations concerning the misuse of confidential client information into a much broader crisis involving admitted confidentiality breaches, failed internal investigations, leadership departures, regulatory and parliamentary scrutiny, government restrictions and client fallout.
The KPMG Australia hub brings together the reporting and analysis of the scandal, including a detailed chronology following events from the original disclosures through KPMG’s subsequent admissions and the regulatory and commercial consequences.
Explore the KPMG Australia audit leak scandal timeline →
The full KPMG Australia scandal timeline
This timeline is a live document and continues to be updated as new developments emerge.
Last updated: 23 September 2026
PwC Evergrande scandal
Explore the PwC Evergrande Scandal →
PwC’s audits of China Evergrande have developed into one of the most consequential regulatory and legal cases currently confronting the Big Four.
Chinese and Hong Kong regulators have taken action over deficiencies in the audit work, while Evergrande’s liquidation has opened a new phase of litigation involving PwC entities in Hong Kong and mainland China as well as PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited, the global coordinating entity of the PwC network.
The PwC Evergrande hub brings together the regulatory findings, litigation, analysis and chronology of the case, including the implications for auditor liability and the structure of global professional-services networks.
See the full PwC Evergrande scandal timeline →
Why these cases matter
Big Four scandals frequently extend far beyond the conduct of an individual auditor, partner or engagement team.
They can raise wider questions about auditor independence, professional scepticism, conflicts of interest, whistleblower protection, client confidentiality, the effectiveness of internal investigations and the ability of regulators to oversee enormous multidisciplinary professional-services organisations.
Some also expose a structural question at the heart of the Big Four model: how responsibility should be allocated across international networks that present themselves commercially as global organisations while operating through legally separate national member firms.
The cases collected here provide a way of following those questions across firms, jurisdictions and time.
An evolving resource
Big Four Scandals is a growing Big4News resource.
New scandal hubs and detailed timelines will be added as the archive expands, while existing pages will continue to be updated as investigations progress, courts issue decisions, regulators take action and new evidence emerges.
Big4News distinguishes between allegations, regulatory findings and established court findings. Where allegations are contested or proceedings remain unresolved, that status is identified in the underlying coverage.
About Claudine Cassar
I’m a corporate anthropologist and former Deloitte equity partner. I sold my technology business to Deloitte in 2016 and led the Malta Consulting team for five years. I am the founder and editor of Big4News, which provides independent, clear analysis of PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG — free from corporate spin.
Find me on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, or my author website.
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