EY (Ernst & Young)

EY (Ernst & Young)
Name	EY (Ernst & Young)
Type	Private network of member firms
Industry	Professional services
Founded	1989 (merger)
Headquarters	London, United Kingdom
Key people	Carmine Di Sibio; Andy Baldwin; Mark Weinberger
Revenue	Over US$40 billion (recent)
Employees	~300,000 worldwide
Website	ey.com

Contents

EY (Ernst & Young) Ernst & Young emerged from a 1989 merger and is a multinational professional services network offering audit, advisory, tax, and transaction advisory services to clients across sectors. The organization competes with Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, and advisory arms of McKinsey & Company and Boston Consulting Group while serving corporations such as Apple Inc., General Electric, Toyota Motor Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell, and HSBC. EY maintains relationships with international institutions like the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, European Commission, United Nations, and International Organization of Securities Commissions.

History

The network traces antecedents to professional firms and partnerships including Ernst & Ernst and Arthur Young & Co., with roots reaching back to the 19th and early 20th centuries alongside contemporaries such as Arthur Andersen and Coopers & Lybrand. The 1989 merger that formed the present network echoed consolidation trends exemplified by the mergers that created Price Waterhouse Coopers and the dissolution of Arthur Andersen after the Enron scandal. Over ensuing decades, the network expanded through regional member firm agreements with organizations like Banco Santander, Deutsche Bank, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, and AstraZeneca. Leadership transitions involved figures linked to Barclays, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock while strategic moves aligned with initiatives from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and Financial Stability Board. The network’s history intersected with regulatory actions by bodies including U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Conduct Authority, European Central Bank, and Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

EY provides audit services historically comparable to offerings by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, KPMG International, and PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited; tax services paralleling practices at firms like Grant Thornton International; advisory and consulting services in areas overlapping with Accenture, Bain & Company, and McKinsey & Company; and transaction advisory services used in mergers and acquisitions involving companies such as Amazon (company), Microsoft, Berkshire Hathaway, ExxonMobil, and Johnson & Johnson. Specialized practices include forensic accounting engagements tied to cases involving Wells Fargo, Deutsche Bank, UBS, and Credit Suisse; cybersecurity and digital transformation work in collaboration with technology vendors like IBM, SAP SE, Oracle Corporation, and Google LLC; and sustainability and climate-related advisory aligned with frameworks from Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, Science Based Targets initiative, and Carbon Disclosure Project. The firm’s service lines engage sectors represented by Pfizer, Novartis, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Siemens, Volkswagen, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Shell plc, and BP.

The network operates as a global network of independent member firms modeled similarly to structures used by PwC, Deloitte, and KPMG, with a central coordinating entity and national partnerships such as those in United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, India, Australia, and Brazil. Governance involves global and regional executive committees comparable to the governance approaches of International Federation of Accountants members and oversight influenced by standards set by International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board and International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants. The network has appointed chief executives who previously held roles at General Electric, Ernst & Young Global Limited-affiliated boards, and advisory panels connected to World Economic Forum and G20 summits. External oversight and audit quality review processes involve regulators such as Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and Canadian Public Accountability Board.

Member firms operate across major financial centers including New York City, London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, Frankfurt, Sydney, Mumbai, São Paulo, Toronto, Dubai, Zurich, Madrid, Paris, Johannesburg, and Seoul. The network maintains alliances and contracts with corporates and public entities including European Investment Bank, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, United States Department of Justice, U.S. Department of the Treasury, and national revenue authorities such as Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the Internal Revenue Service. Regional hubs coordinate services across country practices following patterns seen in multinational networks like Ernst & Young US LLP and EY Global Limited affiliates.

The network has been involved in litigation and regulatory investigations reminiscent of high-profile matters involving Arthur Andersen and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Cases have touched on audit failures connected to companies including Lehman Brothers, Wirecard, Tesco, Autonomy Corporation, Satyam Computer Services, Theranos, and Parmalat. Regulators such as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Serious Fraud Office (United Kingdom), European Securities and Markets Authority, and Australian Securities and Investments Commission have investigated member firm work. Legal outcomes have included fines, settlements, and mandated audit reforms administered in contexts similar to enforcement actions involving Goldman Sachs, HSBC, and BNP Paribas. The network has also faced scrutiny for tax advisory work linked to multinational tax structures used by Google, Apple Inc., Amazon (company), and Starbucks, prompting debates involving the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Base Erosion and Profit Shifting project and national tax authorities.

EY promotes corporate responsibility programs and sustainability advisory services aligned with initiatives from United Nations Global Compact, Sustainable Development Goals, Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, and Science Based Targets initiative. The network reports on environmental, social, and governance metrics paralleling disclosures by Microsoft, Unilever, IKEA, and Patagonia (company), and collaborates with nonprofit organizations such as Oxfam, Red Cross, World Wildlife Fund, and Conservation International. Diversity and inclusion programs reference standards and partnerships similar to those endorsed by Catalyst (organization), The Prince's Trust, and Human Rights Campaign. Corporate philanthropy efforts and pro bono services engage universities and research centers including Harvard University, London School of Economics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and National University of Singapore.

Category:Professional services firms