Country Garden announces PwC resignation as auditor

Country Garden Holdings announced that PwC has agreed to resign as its auditor, making it the latest Chinese company to part ways with the firm.

The property developer has appointed Hong Kong-based Zhonghui Anda CPA as its new auditor until its next annual general meeting.

PwC has faced scrutiny for its auditing of China Evergrande Group, which was embroiled in a $78 billion fraud scandal, leading to client departures, cost reductions, and layoffs.

The firm declined to comment on specific client matters when questioned about Country Garden by Reuters.

More than 50 Chinese companies, including PwC’s previous mainland client leader, Bank of China, and several state-owned enterprises and financial institutions, have either dropped PwC or cancelled plans to hire them as their auditor.

Country Garden cited the auditor’s inability to meet the publication deadline for its 2023 audited financial statements as the reason for the switch. This delay is attributed to “recent relevant matters related to the company’s auditor and market information.”

Attribution: Reuters

Subediting: M. S. Salama