PwC profits up on back of compliance boom

UK consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers has benefited from the rise of corporate regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley.

The company's profit from UK operations grew by four per cent to £1.6bn for the year ended 30 June, compared to a seven per cent decline in the previous year.

The profit included £223m from the sale of PwC Consulting to IBM.

After taking into account that one-time gain, each of the firm's 752 partners took home £511,000, their share of the profit which they are paid in lieu of salary.

PwC UK chairman Kieran Poytner earned £1.75m, a 27 per cent rise from last year.

Revenue rose 16 per cent for non-audit clients, an area the consultancy has been focusing on.

Poytner said in a statement that 14 of PwC's 25 largest clients are non-audit compared to eight a year ago and that the company would continue to pursue this line of work.

Buoyed by services related to regulations such as International Financial Reporting Standards and Sarbanes-Oxley, assurances turnover grew eight per cent to £725m.

The advisory business also grew over the year, with turnover rising nine per cent to £367m, while profit from the tax business dropped four per cent to £476m.

Poytner was optimistic for the future, saying: "In the short to medium-term I see substantial growth opportunities for all our businesses."

The compliance boom also was a factor this year for fellow consultancy Ernst & Young UK. Last week the company said it has seen a 15 per cent rise in fees from non-audit work and that half of its revenues come from non-audit clients.