Key facts
- KPMG Australia Chairman Martin Sheppard resigned.
- Senior partners Paul Rogers and Eileen Hoggett also resigned.
- Resignations stem from allegations of misusing confidential client information to win audits.
- The firm's CEO and audit chief previously resigned due to the scandal.
- KPMG acknowledged failing to meet expected standards.
KPMG Australia's chairman, Martin Sheppard, and two senior partners, Paul Rogers and Eileen Hoggett, are resigning from the firm amid a scandal involving the alleged misuse of confidential client information to win audit contracts. Sheppard, who has been chairman since 2023, will depart at the end of August. Rogers and Hoggett were reportedly involved in using confidential client data to bid for new audit contracts.
Interim CEO Stan Stavros acknowledged that the firm "did not meet the standards expected of us" and is committed to addressing the failings. These departures follow the earlier resignations of KPMG Australia's chief executive, Andrew Yates, and audit lead Julian McPherson in May, who stepped down after the firm admitted to mishandling a whistleblower report concerning client confidentiality breaches.
KPMG had stated that City law firm Ashurst was engaged to investigate the allegations made in May 2024. However, Ashurst partner Jane Harvey denied this, telling a parliamentary inquiry that the firm was never instructed to investigate and did not conduct one.