CPA Trade Group Pitches Updated Ethics Rules for PE-Backed Firms

An accounting industry group has proposed an ethics rules refresh addressing pitfalls posed by private equity’s growing investments in the sector.

An ethics body of the American Institute of CPAs released a proposal Sunday that would rewrite 25-year-old rules governing firms that have replaced their traditional partnership structure. The effort builds on recommendations that an industry task force produced earlier this year in response to the rise of third-party investments.

Roughly half of the 30 largest US firms have taken on private equity ownership with firms like New Mountain Capital, which has a minority stake in Grant Thornton and announced ...