Tag Archives: KPMG

This afternoon.

Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2

Debenhams workers and their supporters picket outside Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdele (KPMG) accountancy and auditing  firm, who are dealing with the store chain’s liquidation.

The workers, who were made redundant in April, have still  not received their redundancy payments.

Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews


From top: National broadband contract; KPMG logo; yesterday’s Irish Times

Paul O’ Donoghue writes:

Depressing. The government is spending €3bn on the rural broadband network, but won’t own it once it’s complete.

KPMG was paid €11m to give the government this advice….

KPMG, eh?

‘Rolls-Royce’ rural broadband to cost €6,000 per household (irish Times)

Tuesday: “Surely, It’s Time To Shout ‘Stop'”

Previously: The KPMG Connection

Rollingnews

From top: Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy; Minister for Communications Richard Bruton; David McCourt with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at a Science Foundation of Ireland event in new York, March 2018; KPMG logo

Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy recently tabled a question for the Minister for Communications Richard Bruton.

She asked if his department had engaged KPMG in relation to the National Broadband Plan -which is also being engaged by Granahan McCourt, the preferred bidder for the NBP.

In a written response yesterday, Mr Bruton said:

KPMG Ireland was one of a number of advisors appointed by my department to provide specialist advice and services in relation to the National Broadband Plan (NBP), following a competitive tender process in 2015.

KPMG continues to provide advice and services to my department in relation to the NBP.

This include specialist commercial and financial advice; review of commercial operator plans, the procurement process and supporting documents, and preparation of commercial/financial provisions of the NBP contract.

My department is aware that KPMG Ireland performs the statutory audit of and provides tax advice to, Granahan McCourt Dublin (Ireland) Limited and my department is satisfied that appropriate safeguards are in place.

This includes the audit and tax services being provided by different teams within KPMG Ireland and no contact between the teams with regard to the NBP advisory services.

Last month, in response to a question from Sinn Féin TD Jonathan O’Brien, Mr Bruton said his department had paid KPMG €11,475,285 for consultancy work it carried out in respect of the NBP since June 2015.

Ms Murphy’s question in full was:

To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he has engaged a company (details supplied) on aspects of the National Broadband Plan; if so, if he continues to engage the company; if the company is also engaged by the preferred bidder; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Previously: The KPMG Connection

Fintan O’Toole, in The Irish Times, writes:

At stake in the broadband scheme is what Robert Watt, secretary general of the Department of Public Expenditure, has called in an official memo “the unprecedented risks associated with this project”.

When was the last time unprecedented risk turned into a disaster for the Irish taxpayer? A decade ago. Whose fingerprints were all over it?

KPMG.

And who devised the outrageous model at the heart of the NBP?

KPMG.

As of January, we have so far paid KPMG, one of the biggest consultancy and audit firms in the world, €11.33 million for work on the NBP.

This is the way public policy is formed in the State now.

Good times

Fintan O’Toole: KPMG hoovers up fees as politicians forget everything (The Irish Times)

Previously: The KPMG Connection

Screen Shot 2015-11-26 at 09.09.57

Paul Hollway, head of corporate finance with KPMG

The Irish News reports:

Four senior partners at the Belfast office of global accountancy firm KPMG have been arrested over an alleged tax fraud.”

“…Neither HMRC nor KPMG, which carries out work for Stormont departments as well as leading companies across the north, would confirm the names of the individuals.”

“But it is understood they include the Belfast operation’s chairman Jon D’Arcy, who heads its audit and transaction services team, as well as the firm’s tax practice head Eamonn Donaghy.”

“Mr Donaghy is also chairman of Grow NI, the umbrella group representing business, academic and voluntary organisations in the north committed to the devolution of corporation tax.”

Also believed to have been detained are Paul Hollway, head of corporate finance at KPMG in Ireland, and Arthur O’Brien, who provides audit and advisory services to clients including the Policing Board.”

“The four men are known to have set up a private investment company in 2005 called JEAP, from the initials of their first names.”

JEAP invested primarily in property [on both sides of the border], but from 2008 to 2010 racked up £2.8m in losses.

“It is not known if the current investigation relates to the activities of JEAP.”

Meanwhile…

Four top KPMG accountants arrested over alleged tax fraud (Irish News)

H/T: Namawinelake

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Alan Dukes (left) and Michael Noonan at a Fine Gael event in 2002

 

The Government is considering the appointment of a Commission of Investigation into certain activities and transactions at IBRC, former Anglo Irish Bank.
A proposal to establish such an inquiry has been brought to Cabinet today by Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, using existing 2004 legislation. An announcement is anticipated later today.

The Government had previously asked IBRC special liquidators, Kieran Wallace [of KPMG, which advised on the Siteserv deal] and Eamonn Richardson to review various IBRC transactions which involved a cost to the Exchequer of at least €10 million or were seen to involve other matters of public interest.

RUN!

Government considering IBRC commission of investigation (Harry McGee and Cliff Taylor, Irish Times)

Earlier: Previously On ‘Falsified Documents’

Update:

siteservkieran wallace

The KPMG motion (top) and Kieran Wallace (above)

This just in.

Following uncomfortable revelations made during the RTÉ Vs Denis O’Brien court case last week.

A motion put down by Catherine Murphy and Fianna Fáil TDs [on the order paper for next Tuesday] concerning the involvement of KPMG in the Siteserv review  and other ‘matters’.

Ms Murphy said:

 I’ve said from the start that the review – in it’s current form, is simply not fit for purpose. There are far too many conflicts of interest, be they perceived or real – on behalf of KPMG and specifically Kieran Wallace.

The most recent revelations in the High Court regarding the relationship between the Special Liquidator, Kieran Wallace, and some senior Debtors of IBRC serves to underline those conflicts and makes it impossible for the review to continue in its current form and that is why we are calling on the Minister to take the opportunity to reconsider and that’s what this Motion is trying to achieve.

Previously: The KPMG Connection

Siteserv on Broadsheet

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Via Stephen Donnelly TD

Update:

Hmmm.

000a7aee-642Hugh-Cooney

Walter Hobbs (top) and Siteserv non-executive director Robert Dix and chairman Hugh Cooney at Siterserv’s EGM in Davy House, Dawson Street, Dublin on April 5 2012

This morning, Mark Paul, in the Irish Times, reports on Finance Minister Michael Noonan’s announcement that KPMG is to carry out a review of the sale of Siteserv to Denis O’Brien’s Millington.

Kieran Wallace and Eamon Richardson of KPMG, the IBRC liquidators, will carry out the review.

From his piece Mr Paul writes that this may be deemed controversial because the Siteserv sale was overseen by Davy and…KPMG.

In effect, the special liquidators from KPMG will review the probity and commercial reasoning behind a transaction that was approved in 2012 by KPMG, albeit by a different department of the accounting firm and by different executives.

Still, this issue of a perceived conflict of interest is likely to be one of the first sticks grasped by the Opposition to beat the Government.

Indeed.

But there’s more.

It also seems likely that there may be further unease given that non-executive director at Siteserv Robert Dix, and chairman of Siteserv Hugh Cooney also have connections with KPMG.

Both Mr Dix and Mr Cooney were vocal in support of the Millington bid at the shareholders’ EGM in April 2012 when Siteserv officially voted to accept the Millington offer, despite reports of higher bids.

According to Mr Dix’s LinkedIn profile, he was a partner in KPMG from 1998 until 2008. It states:

“Initially worked in Audit. Set up Transaction Services in KPMG Ireland in 1999 and ran the division until retirement in 2008 providing mergers and acquisition advice to clients.”

As for Mr Cooney, according to Bloomberg, he’s a consultant and company director at KPMG.

Meanwhile Walter Hobbs, IBRC’s  independent expert, who appeared on RTÉ’s Prime Time last night to defend the Siteserv sale, was himself a director at KPMG.

Good times.

Further to this, readers may wish to recall an article in the Sunday Independent by Tom Lyons about the shareholders’ EGM back in April 2012.

From the article, Mr Lyons wrote:

“The public, the media and the four non-corporate shareholders who showed up now wanted to know if Siteserv had been sold for the best price?

Gripping the podium firmly, Hugh Cooney, the chairman of Siteserv, set out the case for the defence.

Mr Cooney admitted that Anchorage had outbid Mr O’Brien.

But, he said: “This revised higher bid was very carefully considered and was not excluded from the process.” Mr Cooney said conditions attached to this bid, which he did not detail, were less attractive than Mr O’Brien’s proposition — and so it was turned down. Altrad’s bid of €60m, he said, had only recently been received and Siteserv’s board and advisors had turned it down too as it was only “indicative” and had various conditions.

Mr Cooney then addressed the media and its reporting of Mr O’Brien, who beside being a billionaire was also an existing borrower from IBRC.

“Mr O’Brien’s offer represented the best offer in terms of price and conditions,” he said, “We were in no way influenced positively or negatively by the identity of the purchaser.”

“Robert Dix, a KPMG veteran and Siteserv’s senior independent director, who oversaw the sale, defended the company. “We identified a very large number of companies . . . the opinion of the investment committee, our advisors, the board, and confirmed by IBRC, [Mr O’Brien’s] was the best bid,” he said.

Mr Neilson [Ray Neilson of Altrad who claimed to have been shut out of the process and who bought a few shares just to speak at the meeting] was no mood to give up. “We said we would double what was going to the shareholders today and the remainder would go back to the banks,” he insisted. “We would give the banks another €11.5m, the shareholders another €3.5m. We wanted to double shareholder value and give the rest back to the people of Ireland.”

Mr Cooney again pointed to the uncertainty around Altrad’s offer price. “I am an experienced director and take my responsibilities seriously,” he said, “I am very happy to stand over the process.”

“Mr Neilson dismissed claims by Siteserv there was only a “slim” chance that Altrad would stick with its higher bid. “The reality is that with the level of synergies we’d have with Siteserv, €60m would have been a very low bid for it,” Mr Neilson said.

“That was our opening bid. If they’d allowed an open fight as we would see it, where they’d allowed in people with synergy, then I think it could have gone for well in excess of €60m.”

Then it was on to the media briefing by Mr Cooney, Mr Dix and Mr Harvey. Mr Dix was on the defence again from questions from five newspapers and RTE.

“We always knew this transaction would be open to full scrutiny because our lender was being asked to write off a considerable amount of money,” he said. The best deal, he said, had been achieved.

Pressed by the Sunday Independent on how hard the bidders were squeezed to get the maximum price, Mr Dix said: “We had a number of rounds. At the end of them we asked them to put their best foot forward. Eventually, you have to have a final round. Denis O’Brien put the best foot forward.

“Because of leaks to the papers the business came under pressure from its creditors because there were questions around the financial viability of the business,” he explained. “We had to quickly get a transaction done at the best price.”

Mr Harvey is a big shareholder in Siteserv, who will share in some of the €5m in cash being given back to shareholders. The Sunday Independent asked him whether he had significant personal borrowings from IBRC.

“I don’t think it is relevant to anything like this,” Mr Harvey said. “I think that’s unfair,” Mr Cooney said. “We have evaluated all the offers and made a decision. The question you have just asked is inappropriate. You are challenging the robustness of our process.”

Mr Dix said he was aware of “noise” from under-bidders, who he admitted were “unhappy”. The Financial Times asked him why he had not taken the higher Anchorage bid.

“What does more mean?” Mr Dix said. “There are headline prices. All bids were subject to due diligence, subject to deductions for this type of debt, that type of tax. The price in a sense is meaningless. . . the net figure from [Mr O’Brien] was higher.”

Mr Cooney said Siteserv was under pressure to complete the deal swiftly at the end. “Because of the media speculation, credit insurers were threatening to withdraw cover, which was putting further pressure on the company … speed was of the essence,” he said.

Mr Cooney said he believed Siteserv could have lost contracts if the process had been allowed to drag out longer by allowing Altrad another eight weeks to put a bid together.

The Financial Times said this would not have been an issue if Altrad had been brought into the process sooner. “I just can’t understand why two really good advisers, Davy and KPMG, didn’t identify this company. Did they screw up?” it asked. Mr Dix denied this.

The Sunday Independent asked had Siteserv’s advisers run enough bidding rounds to shake out the highest bid. “I am not going to get into the detail,” Mr Dix said. “Each offer was fully researched and developed at every stage. . . It wasn’t rushed through, it took six months.”

Mr Dix said Denis O’Brien’s reputation in the fallout of the Moriarty tribunal report was irrelevant and he said it would have no impact on Siteserv bidding for Irish government contracts.

“I have no concern,” Mr Dix said. “Denis O’Brien is a very successful businessman. Those tribunals are something different. They have nothing to do with me or Siteserv. The EU Commission said in the case of Padraig Flynn [the former European Commissioner who was pursued by the Mahon tribunal] it was nothing to do with him. I think it is something separate from commerce, quite honestly.”

As the briefing ended, Mr Dix gave his final thoughts on a bizarre and fractious end to Siteserv’s days on the Irish Stock Exchange.

“We honestly believe it was run in a fair and transparent way and the outcome was the best for IBRC and all other stakeholders,” he said.

After three firm handshakes, Mr Harvey, Mr Cooney, and Mr Dix ended the briefing.

But where was the taxpayer and IBRC’s man, Mr Hobbs, who couldn’t make it because of a prior engagement?

The Sunday Independent tracked him down on his mobile after IBRC and Siteserv could not immediately reach him.

“There was a lot of different considerations, not just price,” Mr Hobbs said. “We are very happy with the outcome. In these situations everything is carefully considered,” he said.

Tom Lyons: A done deal, but were taxpayers the losers? (Sunday Independent, April 8, 2012)

Pic: Irish Independent

Opposition lashes out at plan for SiteServ review (BreakingNews)

Meanwhile…