Deloitte buys minority stake in PwC’s Indigenous Consulting
Deloitte has acquired a minority stake in PwC’s First Nations consulting business, PwC’s Indigenous Consulting, with the company now rebranded as Yamagigu Consulting.
The deal has been anticipated for a while – in March reports surfaced that PwC was working on the sale of its minority stake in PwC’s Indigenous Consulting, as part of its broader tax scandal-induced strategy to pull out of the public sector.
That strategy saw the Big Four firm last year sell off its government consulting business (relaunched as Scyne Advisory), with the divestment of its First Nations consulting arm to arch-rival Deloitte now also completed.
Established in 2013, PwC’s Indigenous Consulting provides consulting services to government, the private sector and community-based clients to improve outcomes for Indigenous communities. Under its new ownership, Yamagigu Consulting will continue to serve these three sectors. The firm will retain its majority First Nations-owned corporate and governance structures.
Commenting on the deal, Deloitte chief executive Adam Powick said the move marks an important step for Deloitte in expanding its consulting work with First Nations people.
“Yamagigu Consulting brings together market-leading Indigenous consulting and advisory expertise and Deloitte’s deep professional services capabilities to support the invaluable ongoing work of the largest First Nations consulting business in Australia,” he said.
With a track record of more than 1,300 projects completed across more than 800 communities around Australia since its inception, Yamagigu Consulting is the nation’s largest First Nations consulting business.
“We’re really excited to be entering this new venture with the Yamagigu Consulting team as they continue to effect meaningful change to create greater prosperity and wellbeing for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, organisations and communities,” Powick continued.
Yamagigu
Unpacking on the rebranding, Deloitte said that Yamagigu is a Wiradjuri word meaning “our purpose is to go with you” which encapsulates the spirit of partnerships and shared journey. On top of that, the Wiradjuri tribe is from central NSW and was one of the largest Aboriginal Australian groupings in the country.
Gavin Brown, chief executive of Yamagigu Consulting, said the buy-in from Deloitte highlighted the beginning of a new and exciting era for the business. “This is an exciting new chapter for our business and one that will allow us to grow our impact while continuing to support the self-determination of First Nations communities.”
“We thank the wisdom and generosity of Wiradjuri Elders who worked with us to reflect the essence of our business, and our commitments to First Nations peoples and communities.”
Deloitte and PwC deals?
The fact that PwC selected Deloitte as its deal partner for the transaction did come as somewhat of a surprise, as deals directly involving the two Big Four giants are rare anywhere on planet Earth (one example can be found in Sri Lanka last year). The two largest accounting-heritage professional services firms in the world compete fiercely for market share in 150+ countries, and are in light of that reluctant to directly strengthen each other.
In recent years, however, Deloitte has pulled away form its nearest rival, the global gap in revenues now about US$15 billion. In the Oz market, PwC reigned for long, yet the tables were turned completely over the past 12 months, with Deloitte overtaking PwC to become market leader, and PwC in turn falling off to fourth position.
