Following the lines of PwC and Grant Thornton, Deloitte has said that it wouldn’t deal with any non-audit services with the clients they audit. Non-audit services include any advisory services, due diligence, and consulting.
Deloitte Haskins & Sells and all its subsidiaries will refrain from offering any services that are not linked to auditing to public interest clients they audit as per Indian regulations.
The declaration of Deloitte has come after PwC and Grant Thornton have debarred themselves in offering non-audit services to the entities they are serving as auditors to.
A spokesperson at Deloitte said, “We believe this would increase the public’s confidence in auditor independence and quality and will remove ambiguity in public and business environment that demands greater clarity about our services.”
This new decision may cost these big firms a considerable amount of money. However, non-audit services are to stay in the market and can be chased by these firms, provided they are not already serving them.
The steps taken by these big firms are voluntary and a part of self-regulation norms. These steps don’t violate current Indian rules. Deloitte further said that their entity is committed to high integrity and superior quality financial reporting.