KPMG (Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler) is a multinational firm that one of the “Big Four” accounting firms alongside Deloitte, PwC (Pricewaterhouse Coopers), and EY (Ernst and Young). ¹

In 2023, KPMG claimed to have 273,000 employees and that it operated in 143 countries. ² In 2024, KPMG earned over $38 billion in revenue, roughly equally split between its accounting, tax, and consulting services. Over $15 billion in revenue comes from its services in the Americas, $6 billion from Asia, and the remainder from Europe, the Middle East, India, and Africa. ³

History

KPMG originated as Marwick, Mitchell and Company, an accounting firm established by Scottish immigrants in New York in 1897. In 1911, the firm merged with a British company to become Peat, Marwick, Mitchell and Company. In 1913, the firm was contracted to help develop the U.S. Federal Reserve banking system. By 1973, the firm was the largest public accounting firm in the U.S. ^{1 4}

During the 1970s, the company was hit by a series of lawsuits and regulatory reviews that set important legal and accounting precedents. In 1971, the company was sued by its shareholders after being accused of signing off on statements made by a client which the suit claimed the firm knew to be fraudulent, The suit was eventually settled for $650,000. In 1975, the Securities and Exchange Commission banned the company from taking public clients for a six-month period. ⁴

In 1987, the company merged with Dutch accounting firm Klynveld Main Goerdeler to become Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler, commonly known as KPMG. It was the largest merger in corporate accounting history, producing a firm with $2.7 billion in revenue. ⁴

Activities

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)

In February 2025, American KPMG CEO Paul Knopp sent out an email to his employees announcing an end to the company’s DEI programs. Canceled programs included Accelerate 2025, which “aimed to have half of its partners and managing directors from under-represented groups by this year,” and annual “transparency reports” on the representation of women and racial minorities in the company. ^{5 6}

According to Knopp, the programs were canceled because “the legal landscape surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts has been shifting, via executive orders and in the courts.” ^{5 6}

As of April 2025, KPMG’s website still lists the gender representation of its partners and directors, and includes the following note: “We recognize that gender is a spectrum. KPMG is committed to inclusivity and better monitoring of gender identity beyond binary definitions going forward.” ³

Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG)

KPMG supports ESG standards and provides consulting services to help companies abide by ESG activist policies. ⁷

Government Contracts

In August 2024, KPMG was awarded a £223 million ($294 million) contract by the government of the United Kingdom to oversee courses for civil servant training. According to a report published by the Financial Times, the contract was awarded despite promises by the Labour Party-led government to curb outside consulting costs. ⁸

In July 2023, the Canberra Times reported that as the country’s Labor Party government took power in Australia, government contract earnings for KPMG and other major contractors declined for the first time since 2017 as the new administration restricted outlays for outside contractors. KPMG still earned $257.8 million AUD ($164 million USD) in Australian government contracts for the year. ⁹

In July 2022, the Canadian government awarded KPMG a $670,000 consulting contract, though the administration was criticized for signing the contract after having previously pledged to decrease the use of outside contractors. ¹⁰

In October 2020, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that KPMG was awarded a contract worth $224 million for U.S. Army audit support. ¹¹

In 2017, KPMG’s Australia branch was criticized for being contracted by the Australian government to audit private security firm Paladin before potentially being awarded a $423 million (269 million USD) contract. At a Senate inquiry hearing, KPMG was accused of accidentally auditing the wrong firm, which one Senator called an “incredible failure” while KPMG denied any wrongdoing. ¹²

From 2012 to 2017, KPMG earned $557 million from federal contracts, the most of the “Big Four” accounting firms at the time. ¹³

KPMG Foundation

The U.S. branch of KPMG maintains the KPMG Foundation, a nonprofit grantmaking organization that donates primarily to universities, education funds, and poverty-relief charities. In 2020, after the death of George Floyd, the Foundation pledged $500,000 to support organizations that “combat racial inequity.” ^{14 15}

1. “Our History.” KPMG. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://kpmg.com/xx/en/about/our-history.html.
2. ^[1] “Our History.” KPMG. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://kpmg.com/xx/en/about/our-history.html.
3. “Corporate Reporting.” KPMG. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://kpmg.com/xx/en/about/corporate-reporting.html
4. “KPMG Worldwide.” Encyclopedia. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.encyclopedia.com/books/politics-and-business-magazines/kpmg-worldwide.
5. “KPMG reverses DEI commitments.” CFO Brew. February 27, 2025. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.cfobrew.com/stories/2025/02/27/kpmg-reverses-dei-commitments.
6. “KPMG in America removes DEI initiatives from its website.” The Times. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/companies/article/kpmg-in-america-removes-dei-initiatives-from-its-website-lp5fx8svj.
7. “ESG Regulatory Essentials.” KPMG. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://kpmg.com/xx/en/our-insights/esg/esg-regulatory-essentials.html.
8. Booth, James. “KPMG wins £223m UK government contract.” Financial News. August 27, 2024. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/kpmg-wins-223m-uk-government-contract-318a1067.
9. Canales, Sarah Basford. “The cost of consulting: Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers earn $813m as government cracks the whip.” The Canberra Times. July 10, 2023. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/8264641/the-cost-of-consulting-big-four-earn-813m-as-government-cracks-the-whip/.
10. “Federal government defends hiring KPMG for cost savings advice.” Consulting.ca. November 9, 2023. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.consulting.ca/news/3767/federal-government-defends-hiring-kpmg-for-cost-savings-advice.
11. Martin, Nicholas. “KPMG, EY Win $322M in DoD Audit Support Contracts.” Gov Con Wire. October 30, 2020. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.govconwire.com/2020/10/kpmg-ey-win-322m-in-dod-audit-support-contracts/
12. Belot, Henry. “‘Incredible failure’: KPMG rejects claims it assessed ‘the wrong company’ before $423m payment to Paladin.” The Guardian. February 23, 2024. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/feb/24/incredible-failure-kpmg-rejects-claims-it-assessed-the-wrong-company-before-423m-payment-to-paladin.
13. McIlroy, Tom; Tadros, Edmund. “Revealed: Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC earned $1.7b from government work.” Financial Review. April 3, 2018. Accessed April 3, 2025. https://www.afr.com/companies/professional-services/revealed-deloitte-ey-kpmg-and-pwc-earned-17b-from-government-work-20180326-h0xymn#:~:text=Exclusive-,Revealed:%20Deloitte%2C%20EY%2C%20KPMG%20and%20PwC%20earned,$1.7b%20from%20government%20work&text=Federal%20government%20business%20generated%20$1.7,$365%20million%20in%20that%20period.&text=This%20is%20the%20first%20time,the%20AusTender%20contract%2Dtracking%20database.
14. “Kpmg U S Foundation Inc Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/223263347/202411369349318946/full.
15. Knopp, Paul. “Reflecting on KPMG’s Role in Advancing Racial Equity and Justice.” LinkedIn. June 5, 2020. Accessed February 27, 2025. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/reflecting-kpmgs-role-advancing-racial-equity-justice-paul-knopp/.