Andersen Vietnam to merge with KPMG
AFP
FRIDAY, MAY 10, 2002 11:52:53 AM
HANOI: Andersen Vietnam, the Vietnamese arm of troubled accounting firm Andersen, plans to merge with KPMG, the firms said on Friday.
The transaction was subject to finalisation of the terms of a memorandum of understanding, but the two parties expect the deal to be concluded before June 2002, the statement said.
"The transaction with KPMG would be complementary in terms of the services and experience of each firm, and clients would benefit from even higher levels of industry specialisation and access to a broader range of services and expertise", said Brook Taylor, senior partner of Andersen Vietnam.
The combined firm is to operate under the name of KPMG, which already one of the largest professional services firms in Vietnam with 180 staff providing services to over 300 clients.
"The expansion of KPMG's business comes at a critical time for Vietnam, where reforms implementing the Vietnam-US Bilateral Trade Agreement are bringing renewed interest in the country", KPMG's managing partner for Vietnam, Bob Ellis said.
KPMG Consulting announced on Wednesday that it has signed a letter of intent to buy the business consulting units of Andersen Worldwide Societe Cooperative, also known as Andersen Worldwide.
As of Monday this week, more than 90 per cent of Andersen accounting firms outside the United States have formed partnerships with former rivals, according to the head of Andersen Worldwide, Aldo Cardoso.
Arthur Andersen LLP, the US branch of the auditing giant, was indicted in March for obstructing justice after employees destroyed thousands of pages of documents related to accounting procedures at the bankrupt US energy giant Enron.
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