Over 13,000 CA Firms serve Public Sector Banks as SCAs and SBAs in F.Y. 2022-23
PSBs employed a total of 13,114 Chartered Accountancy (CA) firms, comprising 61 Statutory Central Auditors (SCAs) and 13,053 Statutory Branch Auditors (SBAs).
CA Firms serve Public Sector Banks – SCAs and SBAs – TAXSCAN
CA Firms serve Public Sector Banks – SCAs and SBAs – TAXSCAN
In response to queries raised in the Lok Sabha, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance, citing information from the Reserve Bank of India, revealed that Public Sector Banks (PSBs) have engaged the services of more than 13,000 Chartered Accountancy (CA) firms.
The queries addressed in the Lok Sabha included whether the government has reduced the engagement of CA firms for Concurrent Audit, Internal Audit, and Stock Audits in Nationalised Banks across the country. In response, the minister clarified that the government does not engage CA firms for these audits in Public Sector Banks.
Regarding the first query, the minister elaborated that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), through its Circular dated September 18, 2019, has mandated that banks should have their own Board-approved policy for concurrent audits. This policy covers various aspects, including the scope of work to be assigned to concurrent auditors and the coverage of business/branches. Consequently, Public Sector Banks have established their own board-approved policies for concurrent audit, internal audit, and stock audit.
For the second query, the minister addressed concerns about whether the Reserve Bank and Public Sector Banks decided not to have concurrent audits for banks with a turnover of less than Rs. 40 crore per year. The minister clarified that the RBI has not issued any instruction advising PSBs not to conduct concurrent audits for banks with turnovers below Rs. 40 crore per year.
For the third question, the minister has disclosed the data of the PSBs which engaged the CA firms for auditing with the information provided by the apex bank. The details provided shows the CA firms appointed as Statutory Central Auditors (SCAs) and Statutory Branch Auditors (SBAs) by the PSB for the last 3 years.
In the F.Y. 2022-23, the PSBs has engaged 61 SCAs and 13053 SBAs and 13,114 CA firms in total. From the analysis, the number of CA firms is decreasing. In the F.Y. 2020-21, the total CA firms engaged are 18,884 and in F.Y. 2021-22 it has been decreased to 16,460.
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