Ideagen report provides complete picture of Big Four dominance in European regulated markets.
Dec 19, 23
The Big Four firms hold 93% of the European auditor market share according to a new report from regulatory industry experts, Ideagen.
"European regulated exchanges and listed company audits" report provides a comprehensive breakdown of auditor and activity for the fiscal year 2022, including the footprint of the Big Four and other interesting findings including:
- Companies based in the Netherlands rank highest in terms of average audit fees, reaching €3.7 million. In contrast, Bulgarian companies hold the record for the lowest average audit fees, at €78 thousand.
- The London Stock Exchange Main Market boasts the highest number of listed entities among all European regulated markets, with 935 companies in FY2022.
- Surprisingly, Bulgaria holds the record for paying the smallest proportion of audit fees to the Big Four auditors, with 67% of their audit fees being redistributed to mid-sized firms.
- The Big Four firms' global networks continue to dominate, capturing a staggering 93% of the auditor market share for all European regulated markets in FY2022.
- The mining and extractive industry paid the most in audit fees, on average, for FY2022 at €1.8 million per audit. The transportation and communication industry followed closely behind, paying an average of nearly €1.6 million per audit.
Marie Pupecki, CPA, Senior Accounting Research Analyst at Ideagen, and one of the lead authors of the report, said: "This is the first time we have presented this information in a full Europe-wide report and it serves to highlight the critical role of audit quality, public scrutiny and investor protection in the European market.
"It also underscores the significant impact of regulatory developments on the audit profession trends in the markets."
The groundbreaking report was put together using Ideagen Audit Analytics a comprehensive global database and essential tool for anyone developing policy, providing audit services, or researching market trends. Over 450 institutions and thousands of professionals use it every day for expert and actionable insights covering audit and compliance, corporate and legal, accounting and oversight, funds and securities and much more.
The full report can be downloaded here