China hands PwC a 6-month ban and fine over audit of the collapsed developer Evergrande

Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — Chinese authorities have banned the accounting firm PwC for six months and fined it over $56 million for its involvement in the audit of collapsed local property developer Evergrande. The punishment is the heaviest yet for international accounting firms operating in China. PwC will be banned from signing off on financial results in the country for six months. Already, it has been losing clients. The auditor came under Beijing’s scrutiny after the January collapse of Evergrande, the world’s most indebted developer and a symbol of China’s ongoing property crisis. PwC has been the largest of the “big four” accounting firms operating in China.