PwC | |
Member firms have different legal structures; both UK and US firms are actually limited liability partnerships | |
Industry | Professional services |
Founded | 1998 (PricewaterhouseCoopers) 1849 (Price Waterhouse) 1854 (Coopers & Lybrand) |
Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
Area served
|
Worldwide |
Key people
|
Robert E. (Bob) Moritz (Chairman) |
Services |
Assurance Tax advisory Consulting Financial advisory Actuarial Legal |
Revenue | US$35.9 billion (2016) |
Number of employees
|
223,468 (2016) |
Website | www |
PricewaterhouseCoopers (doing business as PwC) is a multinational professional services network headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the second largest professional services firm in the world, and is one of the Big Four auditors, along with Deloitte, EY and KPMG. Vault Accounting 50 has ranked PwC as the most prestigious accounting firm in the world for seven consecutive years, as well as the top firm to work for in North America for three consecutive years.
PwC is a network of firms in 157 countries, 756 locations, with more than 223,000 people. As of 2015, 22% of the workforce worked in Asia, 26% in North America and Caribbean and 32% in Western Europe. The company's global revenues were $35.9 billion in FY 2016, of which $15.2 billion was generated by its Assurance practice, $9.1 billion by its Tax practice and $11.5 billion by its Advisory practice.
The firm was formed in 1998 by a merger between Coopers & Lybrand and Price Waterhouse. The trading name was shortened to PwC in September 2010 as part of a rebranding.
As of 2016[update], PwC is the 5th-largest privately owned company in the United States.
The firm was created in 1998 when Coopers & Lybrand merged with Price Waterhouse. Both firms had histories dating back to the 19th century.
In 1854 William Cooper founded an accountancy practice in London, which became Cooper Brothers seven years later when his three brothers joined.
In 1898, Robert H. Montgomery, William M. Lybrand, Adam A. Ross Jr. and his brother T. Edward Ross formed Lybrand, Ross Brothers and Montgomery in the United States.
In 1957 Cooper Brothers; Lybrand, Ross Bros & Montgomery and a Canadian firm McDonald, Currie and Co, agreed to adopt the name Coopers & Lybrand in international practice. In 1973 the three member firms in the UK, US and Canada changed their names to Coopers & Lybrand. Then in 1980 Coopers & Lybrand expanded its expertise in insolvency substantially by acquiring Cork Gully, a leading firm in that field in the UK. In 1990 in certain countries including the UK, Coopers & Lybrand merged with Deloitte Haskins & Sells to become Coopers & Lybrand Deloitte: in 1992 they reverted to Coopers & Lybrand.