Last month, the US Chamber of Commerce issued its much talked about report on market competitiveness which, among other things, raised the possibility that audit firms would provide better service and be better equipped if they had outside investors, like private equity.
Lawyer and consultant Jim Peterson says that the problem with that is the Billy Rose Law of Investment.
Writing in the International Herald Tribune, Peterson uses the Billy Rose aphorism: "Never invest your money in anything that eats" (Actually, the full quote was "Never invest your money in anything that eats or needs repairing" but that's okay). The legendary showman (who started out as William Samuel Rosenberg) was referring to show-girls and horses but as Peterson points out, it applies equally to accountants and auditors.
First off, the big accounting firms already make good money from the working capital of their partners. Bringing in investors would require accounting partners to vote away a big slice of their stakes.
Secondly, it would fuel more litigation. Simply put, more capital would make plaintiffs more hungry.
Also, there is no evidence to show that the extra capital would expand the market and bring in new big audit players. The Big Four are unlikely to be joined by Number Five or Six in the immediate future.
And finally, if private equity players saw the accounting industry as a way of making a fortune, they would have already checked it out. One thing's for sure: for your own safety, never stand between a private equity firm and a bag of money.
I would add that the other problem with the chamber's idea is that it would undermine the idea that accountants and auditors are supposed to be independent gatekeepers. Outside investors would make it ripe for the kinds of conflicts of interest that created problems like Enron.
The accounting industry faces a huge number of problems including unrealistic expectations about the precision of financial statements and potential criminal indictments and litigation. But throwing more money at it is not going to solve the problem.
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