At the beginning of the year, the four major accounting firms—Samil, Samjeong, Hanyoung, and Anjin—have been rapidly releasing reports, with Deloitte Anjin publishing the most reports this year. These firms have also held seminars on the trade policies of the Trump administration and tax law amendments. The surge in report publications and seminars is seen as an effort to showcase the expertise of the accounting firms and search for new opportunities.
According to the accounting industry on the 26th, Samil PwC has published 37 reports on issues and industries this year. This is more than three times the 12 reports issued during the same period last year. Samil has released reports on various topics, such as "Another Aspect of the U.S.-China Trade Dispute: The Pharmaceutical and Bio Industry," "Southeast Asia Business Guidebook: Vietnam Edition," and "Liquor Industry Report: The Era of Enjoying Alcohol." This month, they even issued three reports in one week.
Anjin also claimed the lead, publishing 57 reports this year, which is an increase of five from 52 reports a year ago. There were topics similar to Samil, such as "Five Major Challenges in the 2025 Global Pharmaceutical and Bio Industry," as well as other themes like the esports industry, space economy, and digital technology in sports venues. KPMG Samjeong also released 17 reports, up from 14 during the same period. EY Hanyoung has not publicly released their reports, but noted that their publications have increased compared to the previous year.
The four major accounting firms have been specifically looking into the petrochemical, automotive, and investment banking (IB) industries. Most of these industries have been sluggish for the past two to three years but have shown signs of recovery this year. In the investment banking sector, Samil and Hanyoung released reports in January on 2024 global initial public offering (IPO) performance and projections for this year, while Samjeong and Anjin authored reports on venture capital investment trends and private equity investment status, respectively.
Industry insiders noted they share similar concerns as securities analysts. An accounting industry official stated, "Competition is fierce to the extent that if accounting firms have similar report items, there are discussions suggesting that they are merely following each other." They added, "Internally adjusting the depth of reports considering client confidentiality is a concern," and said, "Pointing out that the business environment is not favorable from an objective perspective could upset clients, which adds to the anxiety."
In terms of seminar topics, the themes overlapped more than in the reports. All four major firms held seminars in February and March on the response strategies to the trade policies of the Trump administration. It is interpreted that these accounting firms are focusing on the difficulties faced by South Korean corporations in the rapidly changing international trade environment due to the impact of the Trump administration's second term.
In fact, Anjin reinforced its response by establishing a new organization, the "Trade & Digital Integrated Service Group," while Samil built its relevant organization in December 2024 and recruited Kang Myeong-soo, who is from the Ministry of Industry. Samjeong also mentioned that they have been supporting domestic corporations' overseas expansions and local operations by constructing systems for determining FTA origins even before the first term of the Trump administration. EY Hanyoung also officially launched its global trade advisory team in February.
Another common seminar topic was the amended tax law. All three firms except Samil held seminars explaining the amended tax law on consecutive days in February, on the 19th, 20th, and 21st, respectively. The seminars were designed to enhance understanding of the main amendments, including the Corporate Tax Act and the Income Tax Act, to support practitioners in effectively responding to changes. Since these seminars are held annually, it highlights that consulting related to tax law is one of the main businesses of accounting firms.
The focus on consulting by these accounting firms is underpinned by a sluggish business environment. As the market stagnates, the four major firms, which have seen a significant drop in transaction workload, are intensifying efforts to discover new businesses. They are publishing reports and conducting seminars aligned with new government policies and global trends, such as artificial intelligence (AI). Samil alone has launched several center-level organizations this year, including a real estate healthcare center, a global IPO dedicated team, and a support center for auditing U.S. listed companies.