U.S. Regulator Hits Three China-Based Accounting Firms With Hefty Fines

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The PCAOB said these were the first enforcement settlements with Chinese mainland and Hong Kong firms since the regulator struck an agreement with Chinese authorities in 2022 that gave it access to inspect and investigate accounting firms headquartered in the two regions that audit U.S.-listed Chinese companies.

The Shanghai- and Hong Kong-based affiliates of global accounting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have been fined a total of $7 million by the U.S. watchdog that oversees the auditors of U.S.-listed companies, after its investigations found they failed to detect and stop staff cheating on exams.

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) also imposed financial penalties of $940,000 and sanctions on Shandong Haoxin Certified Public Accountants Co. Ltd. (Haoxin), a Shandong province-based firm, and four of its staff for a string of violations of U.S. securities laws and PCAOB rules, the watchdog said in a statement Thursday.