A survey of 1,594 NSE-listed companies by Prime Database shows that 167 of them changed their auditors this financial year. The number of NSE-listed clients of Indian-owned audit firms has dropped from 1,398 in 2015-16 to 1,193 in 2016-17. The number of NSE-listed clients of the top five multinational brands — those belonging to global networks such as Deloitte, EY, Price Waterhouse and Grant Thornton —has grown from 420 in F I-15 to 467 in 2016-17.

This article apeared in Business Standard on 26th December, 2016.