Crowe Horwath chief executive Chris Price , who inherited a mess when he was promoted to the top job a little over a year ago, did well to secure a $200 million takeover deal that unlocks some returns for long-suffering shareholders and leaves most staff with a job.

The deterioration of the ledger at Crowe Horwath, Australia’s fifth-largest accounting firm, in the past few years sparked the arrival of three investment firms circling to take it private.