ASIC casts its eye over PwC, as Senator seeks investigation into firm’s conduct

ASIC has closely scrutinised PwC’s alleged breaches of confidentiality and is liaising with other regulators.

PwC Australia chief Tom Seymour has resigned from the position.

The corporate regulator has revealed it has taken a close look at allegations made on the public record against besieged professional services giant PwC Australia, as members of federal parliament lined up to demand an investigation into the firm’s leaking of confidential tax advice.

Australian Securities and Investments Commission deputy chair Sarah Court told The Australian the agency has closely scrutinised PwC’s alleged breaches of confidentiality and was liaising with other regulators over the breaches.

But Ms Court said ASIC was constrained in what the regulator could do to punish PwC as it operated as a partnership, not a corporation.

“ASIC’s jurisdiction is very limited,” she said. “Obviously ASIC has a responsibility in relation to auditors, not in relation to tax advisers.”

ASIC deputy chair sarah Court.

But Ms Court said ASIC could take action if any individuals caught up in the PwC conduct were revealed to be registered company auditors.

“We are liaising with other regulators closely,” she said.

PwC Australia has faced days of crisis after federal parliament revealed a tranche of emails detailing correspondence between senior figures at the firm discussing the leaking of confidential tax advice.

This culminated in PwC’s chief executive, Tom Seymour, quitting the top job in a move its board acknowledged was “in the best interests of the firm and our stakeholders”.

Two more members of the 16-strong executive board moved to quit on Wednesday, as post-budget parliamentary criticism grew sharper.

PwC’s financial advisory boss, Pete Calleja, and its chief strategy risk and reputation officer, Sean Gregory, quit their positions and the partnership’s executive board.

Mr Calleja, Mr Gregory, and Mr Seymour have remained as PwC partners.

Rob Silverwood will now lead the financial advisory business, while Tony O’Malley will take on the role of chief risk and ethics leader.

The move by the men to quit came after Mr Seymour announced an internal investigation into the leaks on Friday last week, but this failed to quell growing anger.

PwC withdrew its sponsorship of the post-budget parliamentary dinner, which would have involved the Treasurer Jim Chalmers speaking alongside the firm’s branding.

A spokesman for PwC could not answer questions when or why it decided to pull its sponsorship, and with the partnership has failed to comment to the media since the sudden departure of Mr Seymour.

On Thursday, Greens Senator Barbara Pocock demanded the government support a referral of the firm to the Australian Federal Police and the National Anti-Corruption Commission.

Senator Pocock said PwC should be banned from any future government contracts “and keeping them safe when they do things that are totally inadequate”.

She also called on the government to “initiate civil proceedings against PwC to recover a huge loss in government revenue” after PwC’s leak of tax information allowed international companies to dodge millions of dollars in taxes.

Senator Barbara Pocock has called for an investigation. Picture: Martin Ollman

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher told parliament the government was considering what could be done around procurement and panels to tighten access to confidential information as well as putting in place “a very significant deterrent around this kind of behaviour occurring again”.

“It is not unusual before a government takes whatever future steps, if they are available to us through the Treasury and the Finance,” she said. “When we get that advice back we will make further decisions.”

A parliamentary committee investigating the use of consultants in government met on Thursday to establish a list of names required to attend hearings scrutinising PwC’s leak.

A spokesman for Senator Pocock said she supported calling Mr Seymour and PwC’s former tax leader, Peter Collins, to “front up to the inquiry”.

Mr Collins was banned by the Tax Practitioners Board after a tip-off in 2020 that he had leaked the confidential information.