The fourth-largest pension fund in Australia, UniSuper has halted new business with PwC Australia on Tuesday, becoming the most recent fund to do so following a scandal involving the abuse of government tax schemes that initially broke in January.
The move by UniSuper, which manages A$115 billion ($77 billion), means that five of Australia’s top pension funds, managing a combined A$865 billion, have paused cooperation with PwC, which claims to be a “leading adviser” to the industry.
Recent developments at PwC, according to UniSuper, have raised concerns, and the fund has temporarily halted the awarding of new contracts.
The action was taken a day after the “big four” accounting company dismissed eight partners, including its former chief executive, who had yet to leave the firm, in a bid to “re-earn trust”.
According to the fund’s annual report for 2022, PwC served as UniSuper’s internal auditor.
“While PwC has provided the Fund with an assessment that the relationship we have built over many years has not been harmed by this situation,” a UniSuper representative stated.
Tax officials discovered in January that a former PwC partner who advised the Australian government on anti-tax avoidance rules had shared secret draughts with colleagues and then used this to solicit business from businesses.
The scandal has already prompted PwC to sell its lucrative government consulting division for A$1 million and cost it a number of high-profile clients, including the Reserve Bank of Australia.
