The Value Gap Between Internal Succession and External Transactions
Accounting firms now face a widening valuation gap between internal succession buyouts and external sales. Internal buyouts typically range from 80% to 120% of revenue and are paid over several years, while external transactions command 1.5‑3× revenue with 50‑70% cash at closing. A $10 million firm example shows external offers can be 2‑2.8 times higher than internal payouts, even before accounting for cash reinvestment or equity growth. The article argues that AI‑driven automation may create the internal capital needed to narrow this gap, but firms must assess infrastructure and talent considerations.
Evaluating AI Vendors? Start with These 4 Criteria
Accounting firms are inundated with AI vendor pitches, prompting a need for disciplined selection. Hrishikesh Pippadipally, CIO of Wiss, outlines four criteria: industry‑specific expertise, robust data governance, end‑to‑end execution capability, and an enablement‑over‑replacement mindset. He stresses that the right partner must...
EisnerAmper to Add KLG Business Valuators & Forensic Accountants
EisnerAmper, a top‑20 accounting firm, announced it will acquire KLG Business Valuators & Forensic Accountants in a deal slated to close in May 2026. KLG, based in Melville, NY, brings expertise in business valuations, forensic accounting, litigation support and expert‑witness...
Internal Audit's Role in Guiding AI Responsibly
Artificial intelligence adoption is outpacing governance, prompting companies to seek stronger oversight. Internal audit is positioned to act as a front‑line catalyst, mapping AI deployments, evaluating governance frameworks, and testing controls throughout the model lifecycle. By embedding audit early, firms...
Leading Adaptive Transformation in the Face of AI
Marc Staut, CTO of Boomer Consulting, warns that generative AI is reshaping accounting firms faster than traditional governance can keep pace. He highlights real risks such as data leakage and hallucinated outputs that can compromise client confidentiality and work quality....
Accounting Firms Need New Metrics for an Old Model
Public accounting’s century‑old LUMBR scorecard—leverage, utilization, margin, billing rate and realization—was built for a linear, hour‑based model. Today, automation, AI, talent scarcity and client demand for insight render those metrics insufficient. The article proposes a new scorecard centered on value...
Tax Strategy: Preparing for Trump Account Contributions
The IRS has processed Form 4547 for over 4 million children, with more than 1 million qualifying for the $1,000 federal contribution under the Trump account program. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates the initiative will cost about $15 billion through 2034, driven largely...
NY Lawmaker Aims for SALT Expansion
Republican Rep. Nick LaLota of New York is pushing to extend the temporary $40,000 SALT deduction cap beyond its five‑year sunset. He seeks to embed additional SALT benefits in the upcoming GOP spending bill, which could also include tax provisions....
IRS Employees Owe Millions in Student Loan Repayment Benefits
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration reported that more than 1,000 IRS employees owe roughly $8.2 million for failing to meet the service‑agreement conditions of the agency’s Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP). Since its 2023 launch, the SLRP has repaid...
Reduce Billing Disputes to Accelerate Cash Flow
Billing disputes in professional‑services firms signal a misalignment between delivery, pricing, and financial recording. The article outlines how vague scopes, out‑of‑scope work, delayed invoicing, and poor revenue‑recognition links fuel late payments and audit friction. It proposes precise engagement terms, milestone‑based...
Silicon Valley's Hottest AI Financial Metric Is Also Its Least Trusted
Cluely CEO Roy Lee publicly admitted he exaggerated the startup’s annual recurring revenue, first claiming a $7 million ARR and later correcting it to $5.2 million. The confession highlights a broader pattern where AI‑focused startups manipulate ARR, a metric that has become...
Artifact's Omni AI Uses Plain Language to Automate Workflows
Artifact unveiled Omni, an AI‑driven agentic workflow platform designed for accounting firms. Users describe tasks in plain language and Omni automatically creates GAAP‑compliant, API‑based workflows that span tools such as QuickBooks Online, Bill.com, Gusto and Outlook. The solution requires no...
Designing an AI-Ready Accounting Function
Gartner’s Finance Symposium 2026 outlines five imperatives for building an AI‑ready accounting function. It calls for shifting from periodic, manual tasks to continuous, machine‑driven processes that enable faster, more accurate reporting. The firm stresses that by 2030, 90% of finance...
Weaver Acquires SaaS Provider
Weaver, ranked No. 29 on Accounting Today’s 2026 Top 100 Firms, announced the acquisition of Mass Ingenuity, a Portland‑based SaaS provider, effective April 1. The deal brings Mass Ingenuity’s enterprise performance management platform and related IP into Weaver’s consulting portfolio, serving both public...
IRS Offers Guidance on Nominating Opportunity Zone Tracts
The IRS and Treasury have issued Revenue Procedure 2026‑12 outlining how states, territories and the District of Columbia can nominate census tracts as Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZs) under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The legislation makes the opportunity‑zone program permanent and adds specific...
How Fire-Damaged Small Businesses Rebuilt when Insurance Failed
One year after the Palisades Fire razed 13,000 homes and 2,600 small businesses in Southern California, the region’s recovery has been hampered by a crippled insurance market. Seven of the state’s twelve largest insurers had already withdrawn fire coverage, leaving...
What Cutting Bookkeeping Means for the Future of Advisory
Accounting firms are shifting from manual bookkeeping to AI‑driven platforms, slashing bookkeeping effort by roughly 75 %. The founder of Adept leveraged an AI‑powered system to clean three years of data in two days, turning month‑end reporting into a real‑time service....
Committee Advances Tax and IRS Legislation
The House Ways and Means Committee unanimously approved five bipartisan tax bills targeting sexual‑assault survivors, disaster victims, early‑childhood educators, taxpayers, and whistleblowers. The Survivor Justice Tax Prevention Act removes compensatory damages for assault from taxable income, while the Disaster Tax...
IFAC Changes Membership Obligations
The International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) has released revised Statements of Membership Obligations (SMOs 1‑7) that take effect on April 1. The updates require member bodies to adopt international quality‑management standards, provide more flexible entry routes into the accounting profession, and...
Ineligible ITIN Holders Claim Millions in Credits
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reported that ITIN holders filed 45,386 returns claiming roughly $172 million in tax credits they were not eligible for for tax years 2023 and 2024, including $142.8 million in refundable credits such as the...
KPMG Faces Allegations of Blown Audit in Private Credit Collapse
Canada’s top securities regulator has accused KPMG of misvaluing loans in four Bridging Finance funds, alleging the auditor failed to challenge inflated loan figures and misrepresented audit quality for 2019‑2020. The OSC seeks an administrative penalty of up to C$40 million...
EY Tightens Hybrid Work Policy for Tax Staff
EY announced that its U.S. tax staff must work on‑site an average of twelve days per month, starting July 1, 2026. The firm allows employees to spread those days across the month, preserving flexibility while tightening its hybrid model. Previously, EY...
Private Sector Added 62K Jobs in March
ADP reported that private‑sector payroll added 62,000 jobs in March, with small businesses (1‑19 employees) accounting for 112,000 of those positions. While firms with 20‑49 and 50‑249 employees shed jobs, larger establishments added modest gains, resulting in a net increase...
New App Lets Local Firms Swipe Right on Potential Buyers
Cringe, an AI‑driven matchmaking platform for CPA firms, launches on April 10, offering a free one‑year subscription to firms that complete profiles by April 14. The app surveys buyers and sellers, auto‑generates responses, and presents matches, aiming to streamline the crowded public‑accounting...
IFRS Highlights Cut Costs, New Standards in Annual Report
The IFRS Foundation reported a total income of £1.3 million (≈ $1.65 million) for 2025, boosting its reserves to £49.2 million (≈ $62.5 million). The rise reflects a cost‑reduction program launched in 2024, which trimmed technology and recruitment spending and reinforced fiscal discipline. In the same...
Trump Tax Law's Affordable Housing Boost Hits Snag
President Trump’s 2017 tax reform expanded the Low‑Income Housing Tax Credit, theoretically adding capacity for 1.2 million affordable units over the next decade. In practice, banks hitting the 15% public‑welfare investment cap have throttled financing for larger projects, slowing market momentum....
What Is Your Firm Worth?
Accounting firms are seeing valuation methods shift as private‑equity investors push EBITDA‑multiple pricing, with “good” multiples now 5‑7× and “outstanding” 9‑10×. The article outlines how factors such as organic growth, succession planning, industry specialization, and buyer competition influence those multiples....
Sax Acquires CoMetrics
Sax Advisory Group announced the acquisition of CoMetrics Partners, a boutique consulting and technology firm, expanding its turnaround, profit‑optimization and performance‑analytics services. The deal brings three CoMetrics partners and the entire staff into Sax’s Parsippany, New Jersey headquarters, though financial terms...
TaxGPT AI Agent Aims to Complete the Whole Tax Return
TaxGPT unveiled an AI‑driven tax‑prep agent that can complete a full return by automating browser interactions within existing web‑based tax platforms. The agent extracts documents, enters data, runs diagnostics, and then hands the work to a review AI called Agent...
Help Small Business Clients Integrate HR with Payroll
More than half of U.S. small businesses outsource payroll, yet only 14% have fully integrated HR, payroll, and time‑management systems. Separate processes create data silos, compliance gaps, and unclear ownership, costing time and increasing risk. Implementing a unified HRIS‑payroll‑bookkeeping solution—often...
IESBA to Look Into the Ethics of PE
The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA) has launched a project to examine whether new ethical standards are needed for accounting firms that operate under alternative practice structures, including those backed by private‑equity capital. Data from the International Federation...
Wealth Manager Americana Adds Accounting Firm
Americana Partners, a Houston‑based wealth manager with $12.1 billion in client assets, announced the acquisition of NRT Consulting, a full‑service financial consulting and accounting firm. NRT will be folded into Americana's Family Office Services as a distinct service line, enhancing the...
Accordance Partners with Colleges to Teach AI Skills
Accordance has launched the "Accordance for Academia" program, partnering with U.S. universities to embed AI tools into accounting curricula. The initiative offers faculty free platform access and a limited‑time student trial, with a nominal fee only if usage continues. To...
Amateur Builds Tax Prep Software with AI
A journalist with no coding background used Anthropic's Claude to create Telos Tax, an AI‑generated, free tax‑preparation app that handles both federal and state returns. The "vibe coding" approach produced roughly 234,000 lines of code in a few weeks, a...
EisnerAmper Signs up for Another Tour with TowerBrook
Accounting firm EisnerAmper completed a continuation‑vehicle transaction with its private‑equity backer TowerBrook Capital Partners, keeping the existing ownership intact. The New York‑based firm reported more than $1.2 billion in revenue, 475 partners and 4,700 employees across 43 U.S. offices, and has executed...
Georgia Bill Would Cut Billions in Corporate Tax Breaks
Georgia's Republican‑led Senate passed a bill to lower the state income‑tax rate from 5.19% to 4.99% and to exempt the first $50,000 of individual earnings (or $100,000 for married couples) beginning in 2027. The measure would slash corporate tax breaks...
Accounting Jobs Requiring AI Skills Jump 67%
Demand for AI expertise in accounting roles surged dramatically over the past year, climbing from 18% to 30% of job postings, according to Datarails' analysis of 5,000 U.S. finance listings. FP&A positions showed the steepest rise, with 43% now requiring...
How Agentic AI Helps Accounting Teams Plan Smarter and Forecast Better
Finance departments face mounting pressure to accelerate closes, improve forecast accuracy, and deliver real‑time insights while coping with talent shortages and exploding data volumes. A recent Thomson Reuters survey shows only about 20% of tax firms have moved beyond evaluating...
What Exactly Is Independence for Accounting Firms?
Bob Lewis argues that independence for accounting firms is no longer a blanket refusal of private‑equity offers but a strategic decision based on a firm’s ability to fund technology, sustain succession, and compete in a rapidly consolidating market. He highlights...
Springline Adds Cg Advisory
Springline Advisory announced the acquisition of New Jersey‑based Cg Advisory, adding tax, forensic, valuation and health‑care advisory capabilities while keeping the Cg name. The deal expands Springline’s footprint in the Northeast with offices in Tinton Falls and Toms River. Springline,...
1099-DA Rules Have a Gross Problem in 2026
The 2025 tax year 1099‑DA form, mandated by the 2021 Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act, required brokers to report only gross proceeds from digital‑asset trades, leaving accountants to calculate cost basis themselves. This reporting gap has forced CPAs into time‑intensive...
On the Move: Bennett Thrasher Adds Int'l Tax Partner
Bennett Thrasher announced the addition of Matt Pellegrom as an international tax partner in its Atlanta office, bolstering the firm’s cross‑border capabilities. The hire follows a wave of partner moves across the accounting sector, including new tax partners at Weaver and...
Why AP Leaders Must Modernize Before the Pressure Boils Over
Accounts payable teams face soaring invoice volumes, tighter compliance, and heightened fraud risk while headcount stays flat. Legacy automation tools based on templates and static rules cannot interpret diverse formats or link related documents, forcing manual work and errors. The...
Evergrande Liquidators, PwC to Face Off in Court
China Evergrande’s liquidators have scheduled a court hearing with PwC in Hong Kong’s High Court for May 18, 2026, marking the first public session of a lawsuit filed in March 2024. The creditors’ representatives allege that PwC’s mainland affiliate was negligent and...
IRS Extends Relief for Crypto Brokers
The IRS issued Notice 2026‑20, extending the temporary relief granted in Notice 2025‑7 for another year, now through Dec. 31, 2026. The extension lets eligible taxpayers use alternative methods—such as standing orders or other broker‑designated identifiers—to make adequate identification of digital‑asset units held by...
KPMG Names Next Global Chairman, CEO
KPMG International announced that Gary Wingrove will assume the role of global chairman and CEO on October 1, 2026, succeeding Bill Thomas. Wingrove, currently the firm’s global chief operating officer, previously led KPMG Australia from 2013 to 2021, nearly doubling...
How CPAs Can Build Relevance with Continuous Upskilling
Artificial intelligence is reshaping accounting, turning routine tasks into data‑driven insights and raising expectations for analytical fluency. Jen Cryder of PICPA argues that continuous, forward‑looking upskilling is essential for CPAs to remain relevant and to convert technical expertise into strategic...
Auvenir Separates From Deloitte, Now Styles Itself Streamworks
Founded by Deloitte in 2019 as Auvenir, the Toronto‑based firm has spun off to become Streamworks Tech, an independent provider of cloud‑based audit and quality‑management software. The company will concentrate on small and midsized accounting firms, launching a beta Engagements...
Clients Hope to Get Refunds From Tariffs
The Supreme Court invalidated tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, leaving importers entitled to refunds but without a clear administrative process. The Trump administration is developing an online portal for refund applications while simultaneously probing forced‑labor based...
Mamdani Wants New York Estate Tax Threshold Cut 90% to $750K
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani proposes slashing the state estate‑tax exemption from over $7 million to $750,000 and raising the top rate to 50%. The measure is part of a suite of revenue ideas to cover a $5.4 billion city‑budget deficit and...