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Grant Thornton’s UK chief executive David Dunckley has quit almost three years early, throwing open the leadership of one of the biggest challengers to the Big Four accountants.
Dunckley, who has led the firm since 2018, was expected to stay in the role until the end of 2026 after securing an extension in 2022.
Malcolm Gomersall, the firm’s chief operating officer, will take over the day-to-day running of the business while Grant Thornton searches for a successor to Dunckley, the company said on Wednesday.
“Over Christmas, I decided it was time to take a break, following a successful five years’ service as [chief executive],” Dunckley said. “I am confident that I pass a quality operation into the safe hands of my successor and all our partners.”
Under Dunckley, Grant Thornton had shifted away from the “public interest entity” audit market in order to reduce its exposure to high-risk clients. PIEs include listed companies, credit institutions and insurers.
In recent years, the firm has received several high-profile fines for failings in its audit work as the Financial Reporting Council has sought to improve standards in the UK market.
Since 2021, Grant Thornton has been fined more than £4mn for shortcomings in its audits of collapsed café chain Patisserie Valerie, retailer Sports Direct and outsourcer Interserve. However, in July the FRC said the firm’s audit quality had improved.
Grant Thornton said Dunckley would remain as a partner until the end of March to help ensure a smooth transition.
Dunckley’s tenure had a chequered start, with the 50-year-old criticised in 2019 for telling MPs that the firm’s audit teams did not look for fraud.
However, he stabilised Grant Thornton after his predecessor, Sacha Romanovitch, resigned when colleagues attacked her leadership style and “socialist agenda”.
In its latest accounts for 2022, Grant Thornton reported a 12 per cent rise in revenues to £610mn, while average partner pay fell 5 per cent to £579,000. The firm employs more than 5,000 staff in the UK.
Like the Big Four of EY, KPMG, Deloitte and PwC, Grant Thornton operates as a global network of member firms. Its biggest is in the US, where the firm reported revenues of $2.4bn in the 12 months to July 2023.
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