SEC对四大动用核打击可能重创中国公司

    美国证券交易委员会（SEC）行政初审法官卡梅隆•艾略特今天在112页的意见书中裁定，将四大会计师事务所中国成员所的美国执业资格暂时吊销6个月。意见书的部分内容作了修改，原因是它们对美国证券交易委员会和中国证监会之间互动情况的描述比“外交领域通常使用的语言更为直白”。艾略特可能一直对中国证监会都很友善，但他对四大一点儿也不手软。

    大华会计师事务所没有遭禁。这家事务所已经脱离了德豪国际会计师事务所（BDO），而且我觉得它已经不再为美国上市公司提供服务。

    这项判决将在SEC公布终裁令后生效。四大可以在21天内要求复议，SEC也可以在任何情况下决定复议。如果SEC公布上述终裁结果，四大还可以向联邦地区法院提出上诉，同时要求暂缓执行SEC的决定。这可能导致问题搁置很长一段时间，但对四大及其客户来说，这可能不是最理想的结果。

    这项禁令将产生巨大影响。遭禁期间，四大将无法为美国上市公司提供审计服务。最糟糕的情况可能是这项禁令在今后1、2个月内生效。大多数按自然年经营的公司提交的年报都需要审计机构出具意见，而提交年报的截止日期是4月30日。资质被暂时吊销后，四大的中国成员所就不能再发布审计报告，它们的客户就无法提交年报。按照SEC的规定，这些公司将停牌，原因是投资者没有获得交易其股票所需的数据。对打算在美国首发上市的公司来说，如果选择四大作为审计机构而四大又失去了资质，这些公司就要倒霉了。

    为了避免受到影响，这些公司可以转而选择其他会计师事务所。在美国上市公司会计监管委员会（PCAOB）注册的中国注会事务所接近50家，但就规模和能力而言，能为四大的客户提供审计服务的寥寥无几，甚至连一家也没有。的确，鉴于四大方面存在不确定性，我预计有些二线事务所，比如致同、德豪国际、国富浩华和罗申美，将承接一系列IPO工作。

    四大的美国成员所不会出面来填补这些空缺。要到中国开展业务，它们就得取得临时营业执照；取得执照后，它们就得遵守中国法律；而按照中国法律，它们就不能把审计工作底稿交给SEC。没有哪家美国成员所会为了帮助中国公司而拿自己在美国的营业资质冒险。

    对四大来说，如果一定要暂时吊销中国成员所的资质，那么最理想的方案就是通过协商让这项禁令从5月1日起生效。这样，它们的中国成员所就能完成对2013年年报的审计。这种安排依然会给按财务年度经营的公司带来问题，需要增资或者首发上市的公司也是一样。不过，这些中国成员所可以在11月1日及时回归，对2014年的年报进行审计。

    这已经大大加重了中美监管争夺战的筹码。去年夏天，PCAOB和中方签署谅解备忘录，双方就共享监管调查涉及的审计工作底稿达成了一致。这些审计工作底稿也开始在中美之间流动，许多投资者因此以为这场争夺战已经结束。但问题并没有真正得到解决——PCAOB不能到中国开展调查，SEC则希望不受限制地接触到在美国上市的中国公司。这次，SEC似乎是在向中国监管机构表明，它愿意动用“核打击”，而且无论如何至少使用6个月。我想，受这项决定影响， 那些PCAOB不能调查的公司有可能被这个委员会注销资格，从而让6个月的暂时注销变成永久禁令。说到底，唯一的解决方案只能是中方同意在美国上市的中国公司全面遵守美国证券法规。如果这对某些公司来说过于敏感，比如部分大型国企，中国政府就应该把它们从美国股市拉回去。（财富中文网）

    译者：Charlie

    Cameron Eliot, Administrative Trial Judge of the SEC, threw the book at the China Big Four today, suspending them from practicing before the SEC for six months in a 112-page opinion, parts of which were redacted because they reported interactions between the SEC and CSRC “more candidly than is customary in diplomatic circles”. While he may have been kind to the CSRC, he took the hide off of the Big Four. The firms, especially PwC, were probably feeling a little raw already from the blistering they received in the ICIJ reportyesterday on how they aided Chinese elites to get money offshore.

    BDO DaHua was censured by not banned. Dahua has pulled out of BDO and I do not believe it has any U.S. listed clients anymore.

    The suspension will not begin until the Commission enters an order of finality. The firms can request review within 21 days or the Commission can decide to review it anyway. If the commission goes ahead and finalizes the decision, the Big Four could appeal to federal district court and ask for a stay of the decision. That could delay the problem for a long time, but that may not be the best outcome for the firms or their clients.

    The suspension will have significant effect. The Big Four cannot audit U.S. listed companies during the suspension. The worst possible time for the suspension to begin would be in the next month or two. Most of the calendar year companies file an annual report on Form 20F that requires an audit opinion. That report is due on April 30. If the firms are suspended, they cannot issue audit reports, so the clients cannot file Form 20-F. Under exchange rules, this should lead to the companies being suspended from trading since investors do not have the data they need to be able to trade. Any company planning to do an IPO using a Big Four firm as auditor is out of luck if the auditors are suspended.

    Companies could switch to non-Big Four firms and avoid any consequences. There are almost 50 Chinese CPA firms registered with the PCAOB, but few, if any, have the scale and skills to audit the Big Four’s clients. I do expect that some of the second-tier firms like Grant Thornton, BDO, and Crowe Horwath/RSM are going to pick up a number of IPOs given the uncertainty surrounding the Big Four.

    The U.S. member firms of the Big Four are unlikely to step in to fill the void. Coming to China to do audits would require them to obtain a temporary practice certificate, which would require them to follow Chinese law, which prohibits them from turning over working papers to the SEC. None of those firms are going to be willing to risk their practice rights in the U.S. to help out in China.

    Possibly the best option for the Big Four if it has to face the suspension is to negotiate to have it start on May 1. That would allow them to complete the 2013 audits. Fiscal year companies would still have a problem, as would any companies that need to raise additional capital or do an IPO. But the firms could return November 1 in time to do the 2014 audits.

    This has significantly upped the ante in the regulatory battle between the U.S. and China. Many investors had thought that this battle was settled last summer when the PCAOB signed a Memorandum of Understanding to share papers in connection with investigations and the working papers starting flowing. But the issues really never were settled – the PCAOB cannot do inspections and the SEC wants unfettered access to U.S. listed Chinese companies. The SEC appears to be signaling to Chinese regulators that it is willing to deploy the “nuclear option”, for six months anyway. I think this decision may empower the PCAOB to begin revoking the registrations of firms it cannot inspect, which would make the six month ban permanent. Ultimately, the only way this gets settled is if China agrees that companies that list in the U.S. are subject to all U.S. securities laws. For those companies that are too sensitive for that, like some large SOEs, China should pull their U.S. listings.