In a key reshuffle in the domestic Big 4 fraternity, Sudhir Soni, veteran auditor and partner at SR Batliboi & Associates LLP, a member firm of EY Global in India, is set to join rival KPMG as the firm’s new head of audit and replace Jamil Khatri who had exited earlier to float a consultancy firm, multiple industry sources told Moneycontrol.
Moneycontrol was the first to report Khatri’s exit on January 27.
“Sudhir Soni had resigned months earlier and left the EY network at the end of August. It’s a good move for KPMG to get someone with his experience and skill sets,” said one of the persons cited above.
Two other persons confirmed the development.
A fourth person told Moneycontrol that Soni was likely to join KPMG in the first week of October.
All the four persons spoke to Moneycontrol on the condition of anonymity.
When contacted earlier, EY and KPMG had declined to comment in response to an email query from Moneycontrol. Soni was unavailable for an immediate response.
Earlier this month, EY Global announced that it had agreed to a worldwide split of its audit and consulting business, in one of the biggest shakeups in the history of the Big 4, which also includes PwC and Deloitte. The spinoff is being explored in an atmosphere of increased regulatory scrutiny across the world relating to potential conflict of interest scenarios in the services provided by Big 4 firms.
Sudhir Soni’s departure from the EY India network, which was first reported by ET CFO, would be amongst the first senior-level hires by Yezdi Nagporewalla, who was appointed as the new CEO of KPMG in India for a term commencing February 7 and ending on December 31, 2026.
Soni was a Partner, Assurance Services at the SR Batliboi Network firms in India and has spent more than two decades at the EY India affiliate. During his tenure, Soni served as National Director and lead the Audit and Financial Accounting Services practice. Previously, he has had stints at Arthur Anderson and AF Ferguson & Co.
According to his Linkedin profile, he specialises in Financial Statement Auditing and Accounting Advisory Services, and has participated in and led statutory audits of several large multinational and Indian companies in the cement, pharmaceutical, chemical, retail and consumer goods, infrastructure and construction sectors.
Note For Readers: Corporate Crossings is a series that puts the lens on important executive movements within companies and in the industry and captures the exits & new innings of members of India Inc, investment bankers, lawyers, Big 4 professionals, private equity investors & more
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