SUBSCRIBERS

Wanted: New auditor, because the last one tried to raise fees 

With depressed margins, smaller audit firms face a tough call to raise prices – or risk losing clients

Renald Yeo
Published Fri, Jun 14, 2024 · 03:00 PM
    • Smaller firms face a dilemma: raise prices and risk losing clients to competitors, or continue operating at razor-thin margins.
    • Smaller firms face a dilemma: raise prices and risk losing clients to competitors, or continue operating at razor-thin margins. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: SIMON ANG, BT

    IN AN era when prices for nearly everything – from rent to utilities – have risen due to inflationary pressures, one business expense seems inexplicably stuck in time: audit fees.

    In particular, the fees charged by Singapore’s smaller accounting practices have remained stubbornly flat, even as firms themselves grapple with rising business costs.

    This paradox is particularly jarring in light of upcoming hikes to entry-level salaries, industry players tell The Business Times (BT).

    Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.