So all firms are supposed to be transparent under the new corporate governance regime?

Yeah right, think again!

It seems that some are forced to be more transparent than others. Like the Big Four accounting firms. They seem to have a special arrangement.

MarketWatch reports that the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has issued its report card on the big accounting firms. Then we're told that despite finding ''significant accounting and auditing issues'', it's been decided that this valuable information will be kept under wraps for at least a year.

So why are the Big Four treated differently from other companies. It's the law, stupid.

As the PCAOB points out in its report: ''Both the Act and the board's rules ... made plain that the board would publicly disclose such criticisms if the firm failed to address them to the board's satisfaction within 12 months...Aware of the prospect of such disclosure, each firm engaged in substantial dialogue with the board's staff during the 12 months and each firm made a timely submission...As a result, under the Act no portions of the inspection report that deal with the Quality control criticisms shall be made public."

Under the Act? Actually, it's Section 104(g)(2): "A written report of the findings of the Board for each inspection under this section, subject to subsection (h), shall be...made available in appropriate detail to the public (subject to section 105(b)(5)(A), and to the protection of such confidential and proprietary information as the Board may determine to be appropriate, or as may be required by law), except that no portions of the inspection report that deal with criticisms of or potential defects in the quality control systems of the firm under inspection shall be made public if those criticisms or defects are addressed by the firm, to the satisfaction of the Board, not later than 12 months after the date of the inspection report".

Say that again in English?

Translated it means that if we find anything wrong, we won't tell the world about it, provided you show us that you are trying to fix it.

Pity other listed companies don't have the same privilege and protections. And once more, investors are being denied information that could be valuable.