EY has scrapped plans to break up its business after months of internal backlash and disagreement.
The accounting and consultancy giant had been aiming to separate its audit and consulting businesses in a plan code-named Project Everest, in what would have been the biggest shake-up of the industry in more than two decades.
But partners are set to be told the plan has been shelved as bosses look at a different strategy, the Financial Times reported.
Break up plan: Accounting and consultancy giant EY had been aiming to separate its audit and consulting businesses in a plan code-named Project Everest
When it was conceived last year, EY planned to put the split to a vote of its 13,000 partners as early as October 2022.
Proponents argued it would free both sides of EY from conflict-of-interest restrictions that prevent it from selling consulting services to its audit clients.
But the plan stalled amid an outbreak of infighting at the top levels and now seems set to be permanently scrapped.
A key barrier to the plan was the EY’s US business, which had been fighting to keep more of its tax and transaction advisory work to support the audit business.
EY’s chairman in the US, Julie Boland, called for the split to be halted last month.
The plans were further complicated when the feud spilled into the public eye, causing concern for many of EY’s clients such as BP, Apple and Google owner Alphabet.
The U-turn is yet another headache for EY as it battles with the fallout of several scandals.
Last week, it was banned from taking on new listed audit clients in Germany for two years by the country’s regulator after failures in its work on collapsed payments firm Wirecard.
EY is still grappling with the effects of an exam cheating scandal in the US which saw it fined £81million by regulators last year.
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