ANZ to replace scandal-hit KPMG as auditor after nearly six decades (updated)

Insurance Australia

02/10/2026 02:29

Adds KPMG statement in paragraph 4, additional details in paragraphs 8-9
SYDNEY, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Australian lender ANZ Group ANZ.AX said on Friday it would become the latest blue-chip client to dump KPMG as its auditor following the firm's whistleblower and data leak scandal. 
   KPMG has been auditing the Melbourne-based bank's books since 1969, making it one of Australia's most long-standing corporate relationships.
ANZ said in a statement it would run a tender process to replace KPMG and finalise that process by April next year. The new auditor would begin in the 2029 financial year, ANZ said. 
ANZ did not mention KPMG's scandal in the statement. KPMG declined to comment.
KPMG is at the centre of a regulatory and political investigation after a whistleblower alleged the firm shared confidential client information to support bids for auditing work. 
The bank said KPMG's key partners working on the ANZ accounts had been rotated, in line with auditing best practices.
"A tenure of this length is no longer considered appropriate and has been under consideration by the board for some time," ANZ said.
The loss of the audit contract worth around A$29 million ($20.08 million) is another blow for KPMG, with ANZ joining a growing number of clients reviewing lucrative audit arrangements with firm. 
Insurance Australia Group IAG.AX and Macquarie Group MQG.AX also recently dumped the firm. Real estate company Lendlease LLC.AX confirmed in June it would end its 68-year relationship after its confidential board papers were misused by KPMG staff to support bids for other audit tenders.
The leaks scandal has shaken up KPMG's executive ranks in Australia, with its chief executive and several senior partners leaving the firm.
ANZ said the timing of the tender process was appropriate given the significant transformation program underway and the planned integration of Suncorp Bank.

($1 = 1.4440 Australian dollars)

 (Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Sydney and Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu, Tom Hogue and Kevin Buckland)
 ((Roshan.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com;))