Client exodus from PwC Australia grows as $48 billion pension fund pauses work

By Lewis Jackson SYDNEY (Reuters) – HESTA, one of Australia’s largest pension funds, on Wednesday froze work with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Australia, the latest fund to blacklist the firm amid a national scandal over its misuse of confidential government tax plans. The A$72 billion ($48 billion) fund is “very concerned” and will “restrict consideration of PwC…

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No handouts to big firms to offset global tax, OECD tells Vietnam

By Francesco Guarascio HANOI (Reuters) – The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development told Vietnam last week that handouts to big firms to offset higher levies under a global overhaul of tax rules would be problematic, a person familiar with the discussions said. Reuters exclusively reported last week that Vietnam was planning subsidies worth hundreds…

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Australia Q1 GDP growth hits weakest pace in 1-1/2 years as consumers struggle

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s economy grew at the weakest pace in 1-1/2 years last quarter as high prices and rising interest rates sapped consumer spending, while emerging signs pointed to further softness ahead amid elevated borrowing costs and a slowdown in global growth. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday showed real gross…

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Australia’s Estia Health soars on sweetened $552 million bid from Bain Capital

(Reuters) -Australia’s Estia Health on Wednesday said it intended to back Bain Capital’s sweetened takeover offer that valued the aged-care provider at A$826.8 million ($552.05 million), sending its shares about 19% higher to a near five-year peak. Under the revised proposal, Bain Capital would offer A$3.20 in cash for every Estia share, which represents a…

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Zhao-controlled Binance trading firms at heart of SEC lawsuit

By Angus Berwick and Tom Wilson LONDON (Reuters) – Two offshore trading firms controlled by Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao lie at the centre of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) lawsuit launched against the world’s largest crypto exchange, which highlights concerns over client funds. Swiss-registered Sigma Chain received customer funds from Binance, the…

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Credit repairer PGX begins bankruptcy with $12 million loan

By Dietrich Knauth (Reuters) – Credit repair company PGX Holdings Inc was approved for a $12 million bankruptcy loan on Tuesday, which it will use to auction its assets after the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau successfully challenged its billing practices. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Craig Goldblatt in Wilmington, Delaware approved the loan, allowing PGX, which…

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