KPMG LLP, a full-service Audit, Tax and Advisory firm owned and operated by Canadians, placed part of its treasury in cryptocurrencies, specifically Bitcoin and Ethereum. The company's core values are Integrity, Excellence, Courage, Together, and For Better.
The company jumped into holding crypto as part of its service offering.
"The cryptoasset industry continues to grow and mature and it needs to be considered by financial services and institutional investors," says Kareem Sadek, Advisory Partner, Cryptoassets and Blockchain Services co-leader, KPMG in Canada.
"We've invested in a strong cryptoassets practice and we will continue to enhance and build on our capabilities across Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) and the Metaverse, to name a few. We expect to see a lot of growth in these areas in the years to come," he added.
Crypto is not a stretch for the accounting profession. It allowed off balance sheet obligations that took down major financial firms in 2008.
Adjusted EBITDA evolved to multiply already obscene levels of executive compensation. The accounting profession (with its large consulting arms) acquiesced.
Having missed the Beanie Baby craze and the meme stock craziness of GameStop and AMC, KPMG is ready to embrace cryptocurrencies.
I'm sure it will turn out well after Uncle Sam backstops the systemic risk taken on by the wealthy class. Heaven forbid anyone drop from $4 billion in net worth to $1 billion. They may not be able to pay their accountant as handsomely for tax avoidance.
Update 2-10-22: First the accountants caved, then the financial media. Forbes announced a $200 million investment from Binance, a crypto exchange, in its upcoming SPAC. Conflicted financial watchdogs? It's the PEU way. All the policemen are on the take.
Update 2-21-22: Wall Street on Parade noted "the largest global firms — Deloitte, EY, KPMG, and PwC— and the largest next tier firms such as Grant Thornton, BDO, and RSM, are less focused on performing their public duty of auditing and more interested in playing all sides of client opportunities to optimize their payday."
Update 2-27-22: Warren Buffet had some not so nice things to say about adjusted EBITDA. "Deceptive 'adjustments' to earnings – to use a polite description – have become both more frequent and more fanciful as stocks have risen," Buffett wrote. "Speaking less politely, I would say that bull markets breed bloviated bull."
Update 5-18-22: The cryptocurrency unwind came quickly after financial whores Bill Clinton and Tony Blair were in the Bahamas pushing crypto.
If you don’t see that the crypto “industry” has become just as blindingly corrupt, just as oozingly fatuous, just as profoundly captured by the Nudging Oligarchy as the traditional financial services industry it was supposed to replace … well, you’re just not paying attention.
Update 8-2-22: A number of FDIC insured banks ran with the crypto devils and may go under as a result. How this is remotely OK is a question one should ask David Rubenstein and his former employee Jerome Powell/
Update 12-29-22: Harvesting tax losses on unsellable NFT's is the latest rage. KPMG can confirm these assets no longer have any value and are likely to continue to be worthless.
Update 10-15-23: KPMG said staff did not do their job in auditing Carillion. The UK government contractor collapsed in January 2018
