KPMG Faces Audit Scandal
Thursday 20th August, 2026
"Many, many more" whistleblowers have come forward with reports of misconduct at KPMG Australia, a parliamentary committee probing alleged client data leaks at the firm heard, raising concerns about a broader pattern of wrongdoing.
The scandal erupted in March following allegations made by an anonymous whistleblower that KPMG misused confidential client information to bid for audit contracts.
KPMG initially said the claims were unsubstantiated. But the firm's CEO, audit boss and chairman have all since resigned, and it has confirmed the misuse of internal documents by staff.At a parliamentary hearing in Canberra, Deborah O'Neill, a Labor party senator who chairs the committee, said more people were reporting similar conduct."There are many, many more who are contacting us and they are talking about a repeat of the same behaviour," O'Neill said.
KPMG has acknowledged it mishandled the whistleblower complaint and has launched a fourth internal investigation after previous ones failed to substantiate any wrongdoing.
'Newly appointed CEO John Sams told the hearing the firm had committed; "major failings here that we have to reflect on, and I'm not going to try and defend any of those because they're indefensible. We can't go with the 'few bad apples' line here, we absolutely have to look at our culture," he said.
Former chairman Martin Sheppard also confirmed reports in the Australian Financial Review that another whistleblower who alleged misconduct in the firm's tax division had received a settlement at the end of 2024.
The day-long parliamentary hearing was the second to investigate how the firm used data on clients.Several current and former KPMG partners along with the firm's clients and lawyers were summoned to testify.
