PwC Hong Kong Gets a Big Fine and Cannot Work for New Companies for Six Months

Apr 23, 2026, 12:46

Introduction

Hong Kong regulators fined PwC Hong Kong HK$1.3 billion. PwC made mistakes when checking Evergrande's money numbers. PwC must pay HK$300 million fine. It must also put HK$1 billion aside to pay small shareholders. Two former PwC workers also got fines.

Main Body

The regulators looked at PwC's work for Evergrande in 2019 and 2020. Evergrande said it earned more money than it really did. It said it sold houses before they were finished. In 2019, it said it earned 213.9 billion yuan more. In 2020, it said it earned 350 billion yuan more. Evergrande said it made a profit, but it really lost money. The regulators said PwC did not do its job well. PwC knew about the problems but did not stop them. PwC agreed to pay the fine but did not say it was wrong. PwC said its work was not good enough. It is happy to finish this problem. Earlier, China also fined PwC 441 million yuan and stopped it for six months. Evergrande could not pay its debts in 2021. It had about $300 billion in debts. A court in Hong Kong ordered it to close in 2024. The founder of Evergrande said he was guilty of fraud. The people who close Evergrande are also taking PwC to court to get money back. The property market in China is still not good.

Conclusion

This is the first time in Hong Kong that an auditor must pay small shareholders for bad work. PwC accepted the penalties. But it still faces another court case from Evergrande's liquidators. This case shows that people are watching audit work carefully because of China's property problems.

Vocabulary Learning

company
A business that makes or sells things.公司
Example:He works for a big company.
fine
Money you must pay because you did something wrong.罰款
Example:The company had to pay a big fine.
money
Coins or notes you use to buy things.錢
Example:I need money to buy a drink.
pay
To give money for something.支付
Example:I pay for my food every day.
work
A job or the things you do at a job.工作
Example:She goes to work every morning.

Sentence Learning

Hong Kong regulators fined PwC Hong Kong HK$1.3 billion.
This sentence uses the past simple tense to talk about a finished action. The subject is 'Hong Kong regulators', the verb is 'fined', and the object is 'PwC Hong Kong HK$1.3 billion'.本句使用過去簡單時態描述一個已完成的動作。主語是'Hong Kong regulators'，動詞是'fined'，賓語是'PwC Hong Kong HK$1.3 billion'。
PwC made mistakes when checking Evergrande's money numbers.
This sentence uses the past simple tense for the main action 'made mistakes'. The word 'when' introduces a time clause. The subject is 'PwC', the verb is 'made', and the object is 'mistakes'.本句使用過去簡單時態表示主要動作'made mistakes'。'when'引導一個時間從句。主語是'PwC'，動詞是'made'，賓語是'mistakes'。
PwC must pay HK$300 million fine.
This sentence uses the modal verb 'must' to show obligation. The subject is 'PwC', the modal verb is 'must', the main verb is 'pay', and the object is 'HK$300 million fine'.本句使用情態動詞'must'表示義務。主語是'PwC'，情態動詞是'must'，主要動詞是'pay'，賓語是'HK$300 million fine'。
Two former PwC workers also got fines.
This sentence uses the past simple tense. The subject is 'Two former PwC workers', the verb is 'got', and the object is 'fines'. The word 'also' adds extra information.本句使用過去簡單時態。主語是'Two former PwC workers'，動詞是'got'，賓語是'fines'。'also'表示附加信息。
This is the first time in Hong Kong that an auditor must pay small shareholders for bad work.
This sentence uses the present simple tense 'is'. It introduces a fact. The phrase 'the first time' is followed by a clause with 'that'. In that clause, 'an auditor' is the subject, 'must pay' is the verb phrase, and 'small shareholders' is the object.本句使用現在簡單時態'is'，介紹一個事實。'the first time'後接'that'引導的從句。在從句中，'an auditor'是主語，'must pay'是動詞短語，'small shareholders'是賓語。