SYDNEY: PwC Australia on Sunday entered an exclusivity agreement with private equity firm Allegro Funds to sell its government practice for AUS$1 as it brought in an executive from Singapore to lead its local firm through the fallout from a national scandal.
The scandal, which broke in January, revolves around a former PwC tax partner who had been advising the federal government on laws to prevent corporate tax avoidance and shared confidential information with colleagues who then used it to pitch to multinational companies for work,
Reuters reported.
Amid a growing backlash from key government clients, PwC said it had entered an exclusivity agreement to divest its federal and state government business to Allegro Funds for AUS$1 ($0.67) as first reported on Friday.
Both PwC and Allegro are aiming for a binding agreement within a month, the professional services firm said in a statement on its website.
If the deal goes through, Allegro will set up the new firm as a corporation, not a partnership, according to a source not authorised to speak with media. Ownership will be split between Allegro and the former PwC partners, although the exact split was not known, the source said.
“We have taken this step because it is the right thing to do for our public sector clients and to protect the jobs of the c.1,750 talented people in our government business,” said PwC Australia Board Chair Justin Carroll.
Kevin Burrowes, currently Global Clients & Industries leader based in Singapore, will become CEO and take up the role once he relocates to
Sydney.