The Times has reported that Grant Thornton UK is “exploring a radical plan” to sell off some of its non-audit business to private equity. Shocker. No solid details yet, only that they appear to be shopping around.
Grant Thornton UK has begun sounding out private equity firms over a potential deal that could see them buy into the business, which is jointly owned by more than 200 partners.
Grant Thornton UK, which employs more than 5,000 people, said it was not “actively engaged” in a transaction but that it “continually evaluates” the business landscape.
The firm is said to be working with advisers from Rothschild, which declined to comment.
Yeah, that sounds real deal-y. “As all businesses do, we continually evaluate the external business and economic landscape and explore various avenues that will drive growth for our firm,” said GT UK in a statement. “This enables us to make informed decisions about what’s best for our people, our clients and our firm. We are not actively engaged in any such transaction.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson at Grant Thornton Ireland told The Times they too are “exploring strategic options” but nothing solid yet. “In light of ongoing developments in our profession, we are constantly exploring strategic options to assess what is best for our clients, our people, and our firm,” the spokesperson said. The UK and Irish spokesfolks must have compared notes before making any statements to the media. Or copied each other’s homework.
In their article, The Times went on to bring up two huge regulatory fines the King’s Grant Thornton earned in recent years for shoddy audit work which is a hilarious use of article space.
Earlier:
Grant Thornton explores sale to private equity [The Times]
