Podcasts about pwc

In this episode of our crypto asset mini-series, we explore common transaction types—stablecoins, staking, and lending. The discussion addresses the accounting, including how contract terms and fact patterns can significantly influence the appropriate accounting model.In this episode, we discuss:2:17 – Overview of stablecoins, including the impact of the GENIUS Act9:01 – Accounting for stablecoins15:50 – Overview of staking and the accounting by delegators24:14 – Accounting for crypto asset lending transactionsFor more information, see our Crypto assets guide. You can also listen to the previous episode in this series, Crypto assets – Accounting and reporting foundations.Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop.About our guestsBeth Paul is a Deputy Chief Accountant in PwC's National Office responsible for a team of consultants that specialize in business combinations and related areas, such as consolidations, disposals, impairments, and segment reporting. She has over 30 years of experience consulting with clients and engagement teams on complex accounting matters.John Vanosdall is a partner in PwC's National Office focused on digital assets, revenue, and compensation arrangements. John previously served as both a Deputy Chief Accountant and Professional Accounting Fellow in the Office of the Chief Accountant at the SEC. Prior to re-joining the National Office, he served as the firm's Accounting Advisory Leader. John has over 20 years of experience and has served some of the firm's largest clients as a client service partner.Ryan Blacker is a director in PwC's National Office specializing in the accounting for business combinations and crypto assets. Ryan consults with clients and engagement teams on complex accounting and financial reporting matters related to these topics.About our guest hostDiana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

In this episode of Careers and the Business of Law, David Cowen sits down with Nathan Reichardt, PwC's Lead Managed Services Director and AI Champion, for a conversation that bridges technology and humanity. They unpack why “observability” isn't just a technical concept, it's the foundation of trust in an age of autonomous agents. From building glass-box systems that make AI accountable to recognizing the invisible pressures on professionals, this discussion explores what it really takes to lead responsibly in the era of AI. Key Topics Covered: Agents aren't magic, you must observe them. Why oversight is essential as AI agents act and learn autonomously. From black box to glass box. Transparency, explainability, and compliance as non-negotiable design principles. Responsible AI in practice. What observability really means for governance, risk, and trust. The rise of new roles. Why “AI Observer” and “Observability Lead” may soon become critical titles inside legal and business ops. The human dimension. How leaders can apply observability to people spotting stress, isolation, and burnout before it's too late. From pilot to practice. PwC's approach to scaling agentic AI safely through iteration, measurement, and feedback.

Crypto assets are rapidly evolving – and so is the accounting and financial reporting. In this episode, we explore regulatory trends and market developments, including new FASB guidance.In this episode, we discuss:01:22 – Market trends, regulatory shifts, and financial reporting developments 06:10 – Key developments from the SEC on crypto09:44 – Accounting classification of crypto assets11:55 – Key provisions of the FASB's crypto assets guidance23:12 – Fair value measurement considerationsFor more information, see our Crypto assets guide. Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop.About our guestsBeth Paul is a Deputy Chief Accountant in PwC's National Office responsible for a team of consultants that specialize in business combinations and related areas, such as consolidations, disposals, impairments, and segment reporting. She has over 30 years of experience consulting with clients and engagement teams on complex accounting matters.John Vanosdall is a partner in PwC's National Office focused on digital assets, revenue, and compensation arrangements.  John previously served as both a Deputy Chief Accountant and Professional Accounting Fellow in the Office of the Chief Accountant at the SEC. Prior to re-joining the National Office, he served as the firm's Accounting Advisory Leader. John has over 20 years of experience and has served some of the firm's largest clients as a client service partner.About our guest hostDiana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

In this episode, I sit down with Saul Cohen (Partner at The Expert Eye, ex-PwC) to unpack how small and mid-sized businesses can grow faster with mergers & acquisitions. We get real about today's market—why interest from buyers and sellers is up, why fewer deals are closing, and how founders can still build momentum by de-risking, acquiring strategically, and planning tax-smart exits. We cover: • How to make your company buyable (and why 85% never sell) • When an add-on acquisition beats organic growth • Values & culture fit (the hidden deal killer) • Search funds, seller-supported deals, and liquidity constraints • Baby boomer exits and the coming wealth transfer • Cash vs valuation trade-offs, and practical tax & succession tips About Saul Cohen Saul is an accountant and acquisitions advisor who's helped entrepreneurs navigate financial audits, risk, and strategic deals. At The Expert Eye, he empowers owners to go from operators to savvy investors—optimizing wealth, readiness for exit, and impactful acquisitions. If you're a founder or operator eyeing transformation, this conversation gives you the playbook to scale intentionally. Chapters 00:01:12-00:07:40: M&A Market: Risk and Liquidity 00:07:41-00:16:09: Strategies for Attractive Business Exits 00:16:10-00:21:20: Emotional & Cultural Fit in Acquisitions 00:21:21-End: Exit Preferences, Boomer Trends & Seller-Supported Deals ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In this eye-opening episode, Amb. Elisha sits down with Anil Erkan, a seasoned leadership coach and former senior executive at PwC and Citibank, to explore what it truly means to lead with self-awareness, authenticity, and grounded wisdom.

A video of this podcast is available on YouTube, Spotify, or PwC's website at viewpoint.pwc.comThis week, host Heather Horn is joined by Eelco van der Enden, CEO of Accountancy Europe. In this episode, we explore the fast-changing reporting and assurance landscape across Europe, including sustainability reporting and broader regulatory shifts. We examine the forces driving simplification, cross-border alignment, and the future of the accounting profession—and what it all means for companies operating in or doing business with the EU.In this episode, we discuss:1:55 – The evolving role of Accountancy Europe and how it engages with EU institutions3:35 – Broader forces shaping Europe's reporting and investment landscape14:55 – Bridging the knowledge gap between the profession, policymakers, and society30:18 – Advice for US companies navigating EU sustainability regulations33:19 – Accountancy Europe's Purpose 2030 project and industry benchmarking efforts35:35 – AI, digitalization, and their implications for the accounting profession42:05 – Global collaboration, talent attraction, and simplifying regulationAbout our guestEelco van der Enden is the CEO of Accountancy Europe. He brings over 35 years of experience in business and civil society organizations. Until December 2024, Eelco served as chief executive officer of the Global Reporting Initiative where he led the organisation through groundbreaking changes in sustainability reporting. Eelco previously headed PwC's Global ESG Platform for Tax, Legal, People & Organization Services and has held several senior positions in publicly listed companies, including roles as Head of Treasury, Risk Management, and Tax.About our hostHeather Horn is the PwC National Office Sustainability and Thought Leader, responsible for developing our communications strategy and conveying firm positions on accounting, financial reporting, and sustainability matters. In addition, she is part of PwC's global sustainability leadership team, developing interpretive guidance and consulting with companies as they transition from voluntary to mandatory sustainability reporting. She is also the engaging host of PwC's accounting and reporting weekly podcast and quarterly webcast series.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Doug McHoney (PwC's International Tax Services Global Leader) is joined by Mitch Schuckman, who is retiring after 39 years at PwC and has held a range of leadership roles, most recently leading PwC's Global Tax Pursuits. Mitch is also the author of “I'll Tell You a Great Story” and is a certified professional coach. Doug and Mitch discuss the evolving nature of tax careers, from early technical work to client pursuits and leadership development. The conversation explores the importance of storytelling, the role of professional coaching, and the attributes of high-performing teams and individuals. Mitch shares insights on building trusted advisor relationships, the necessity of collecting diverse experiences, and the challenges and rewards of fostering strong team culture, especially in a post-pandemic, hybrid workplace. Mitch reflects on his career, the significance of mentorship, and his future plans in executive coaching and leadership development. 

A video of this podcast is available on YouTube, Spotify, or PwC's website at viewpoint.pwc.comIn this episode, we continue our series on the European Commission's Omnibus package with a September update that focuses on the proposed amendments to the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). We explore how the changes aim to simplify reporting, reduce disclosure burdens, and enhance interoperability, and we highlight key implications for companies preparing sustainability statements.In this episode, we discuss:1:22 – The European Commission's Omnibus package and mandate for ESRS changes5:50 – Overview of changes made to the ESRS9:10 – Updates to ESRS 1 and 2: reducing duplication, increasing flexibility20:10 – Clarifying reporting boundaries, including leases and GHG emissions34:40 – Interoperability with ISSB standards and where ESRS diverge37:42 – Next steps in the amendment process and what companies should do nowGet caught up on the EU Omnibus package:A deep dive into draft Amended ESRSSustainability now: EU Omnibus in motion – August 2025 updateNew reliefs for ESRS ‘wave 1' reportersEFRAG's next step toward revised ESRSEuropean Commission adopts a recommendation on the VSME standardEuropean Commission adopts revisions related to Taxonomy Regulation Looking for more on sustainability reporting?Read PwC's Sustainability reporting guideCheck out other episodes in our sustainability reporting podcast seriesAbout our guestDiana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group.About our hostHeather Horn is the PwC National Office Sustainability and Thought Leader, responsible for developing our communications strategy and conveying firm positions on accounting, financial reporting, and sustainability matters. In addition, she is part of PwC's global sustainability leadership team, developing interpretive guidance and consulting with companies as they transition from voluntary to mandatory sustainability reporting.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Norsk forsvarsindustri skyter fart. Veksten årlig kan bli tosifret. Men mye skal også ordnes opp i, for det som snart kan bli Norges nest største næring. Flaskehalsene må vekk. Med Anders Brun, partner og leder for forsvarssatsningen i PwC. Programleder Sindre Heyerdahl. Produsent Jenny Neraal. Ansvarlig redaktør Lars Håkon Grønning. Hør E24-podden der du hører podkast. Analyser, nyheter og innsikt i business og næringsliv. E24-podden ble i mai 2025 kåret til årets aktualitetspodkast under Medieprisene i Bergen.

Whether you're preparing for a promotion, a high-stakes meeting, or wanting to step into that next-level version of you, your styling can have a huge impact on fast tracking that success. My guest today is Lucy Owens, CEO of Style Rises. Today we are talking about how to find your authentic style to support your success in your career.We are talking about:The common styling challenges women have in their 40s and onwardsBody changes and styleSuits, the colour black and using colour to build authority Professional dress codes for womenMaking ‘good enough' purchases and dealing with regrets over purchases The 6 Styling ArchetypesCommon mistakes women make with stylingSomething Lucy said today:" One of the best things we can do is use our clothes and styling to showcase who we are authentically. With my clients I help them find their archetype which is really powerful to find your own style and dress code for work."  (Lucy Owens, guest - Her Ambitious Career Podcast)Links:Connect with Lucy on LinkedIn, Instagram, facebookTake Lucy's Style Quiz (and explore your archetype)Grab Lucy's guide: Effortless Outfit FormulasGet Rebecca's free download: The 7 Habits of Female Execs Who Get PromotedBook a free 15-minute Career Strategy Call with Rebecca and build your credibility and visibility as a leaderRate, Review, & Follow our Show on Apple Podcasts:Also, if you haven't done so already, follow the podcast. We air every week and I don't want you to miss out on a single broadcast. Follow now!About Lucy:Lucy is a Personal Style & Image Specialist for high-performing women in leadership — from corporate executives to powerhouse entrepreneurs. Having climbed the corporate ladder herself, Lucy knows firsthand how much your image can impact your confidence, visibility, and opportunities. Today, she helps women transform their wardrobes into strategic assets that reflect who they are and where they're going. Through her proven Style IQ framework, Lucy helps clients develop a signature style that aligns with their personal brand, amplifies their presence, and unlocks next-level career momentum. Her work goes far beyond clothes — it's about helping women show up, stand out, and lead with impact.About Rebecca:Rebecca Allen is a Career & Leadership Coach for corporate women, aspiring to senior levels of leadership. Over the last decade, Rebecca has helped women realise their potential at companies including Woolworths, ANZ, J.P. Morgan, PwC, Coca-Cola Amatil, Ministry of Defence, Frontier Sensing and AbbVie Medical Research through her Roadmap to Senior Leadership coaching programs. Connect with Rebecca

 Nine proven strategies executives and professionals in Japan and worldwide can use to master public speaking and influence with confidence Why do business professionals need presentation guidelines? Most of us stumble into public speaking without training. We focus on doing our jobs, not plotting a public speaking career path. Yet as careers advance, presentations to colleagues, clients, or stakeholders become unavoidable. Executives at firms like Hitachi, SoftBank, or Mitsubishi know that persuasive communication directly affects career progress and credibility. Without guidelines, many professionals waste decades avoiding public speaking. The good news? It's never too late to learn. By following proven principles, anyone can become a confident communicator capable of inspiring audiences and strengthening personal brands. Mini-Summary: Public speaking is not optional in business careers. Guidelines accelerate confidence and credibility, ensuring leaders don't miss opportunities. Should you use notes during a presentation? Yes, brief notes are acceptable. Smart presenters use them as navigation aids, either on the podium or discreetly placed behind the audience. Audiences don't penalise speakers for glancing at notes—they care about clarity and delivery. The real mistake is trying to memorise everything, which creates unnecessary stress. Professionals at companies like Goldman Sachs or Deloitte often carry structured notes to ensure flow without losing authenticity. The key is to avoid reading word-for-word and instead speak naturally to main points. Mini-Summary: Notes provide direction and reduce stress. Reading word-for-word damages authenticity, but reference notes enhance confidence. Why is reading or memorising speeches ineffective? Reading entire speeches is disengaging. Audiences quickly tune out when delivery sounds like a monotone recitation. Memorising 30 minutes of text is equally flawed—it strains memory and removes spontaneity. Modern leaders need flexibility, not rigid scripts. Instead, professionals should memorise key ideas, not sentences. Political leaders and CEOs alike rely on talking points, not full manuscripts, to stay natural and adaptable. In Japan, executives trained in Dale Carnegie programs learn to communicate with presence, not performance. Mini-Summary: Reading or memorising word-for-word suffocates engagement. Focus on key points to remain natural, flexible, and credible. How can evidence strengthen your presentation? Audiences are sceptical of sweeping statements. Without proof, leaders risk credibility damage. Evidence—statistics, expert testimony, and case studies—adds authority. A claim like “our industry is growing” has little weight unless supported with 2025 market research or benchmarks from firms like PwC or Bain & Company. In Japan's cautious corporate culture, data-backed arguments are particularly vital. Numbers, trends, and customer case studies reinforce trust, especially during Q&A sessions where credibility is tested. Mini-Summary: Evidence turns opinion into authority. Leaders should support claims with facts, statistics, and expert sources to maintain credibility. Why is rehearsal so important? Practice transforms delivery. Presenting to trusted colleagues provides feedback and confidence. But avoid asking vague questions like “What do you think?” Instead, request specifics: “What was strong?” and “How can it improve?” This reframes feedback into constructive insight. At global firms, leaders often rehearse in front of teams or communication coaches before critical investor calls or town halls. Japanese executives, known for precision, benefit greatly from structured rehearsal before presenting to boards or government stakeholders. Mini-Summary: Rehearsal reduces anxiety and strengthens delivery. Ask targeted questions to turn feedback into actionable improvement. Do you always need visual aids? Not necessarily. Slides are valuable only if they add clarity. Overloaded decks weaken impact, but visuals with people, trends, or key figures make content memorable. A simple chart highlighting one data point can be more persuasive than 20 dense slides. Visuals also act as navigation, allowing presenters to recall main points naturally. At firms like Apple or Tesla, minimalist visuals emphasise storytelling over clutter—an approach business leaders worldwide can adopt. Mini-Summary: Visual aids should clarify, not confuse. Use them sparingly to highlight key ideas and support storytelling. How should professionals control nerves before speaking? Nervous energy—“butterflies”—is natural. The solution is physical and mental preparation. Deep, slow breathing lowers heart rate and calms the body. Some professionals walk briskly backstage to burn excess energy, while others use pep talks to raise intensity. Finding a personal ritual is key. Research in workplace psychology shows that controlled breathing and physical grounding improve focus. Japanese executives presenting at high-stakes shareholder meetings often use discreet breathing exercises before stepping on stage. Mini-Summary: Anxiety is natural. Breathing, movement, and mental preparation channel nerves into productive energy. Why should you never imitate other speakers? Authenticity wins. Copying others produces inauthentic delivery and limits growth. Instead, leaders should develop their own voice through practice and feedback. Life is too short to be a poor copy of someone else. Famous communicators like Steve Jobs or Sheryl Sandberg became iconic not by imitation but by honing unique, authentic styles. The same is true in Japan: executives respected for leadership presence stand out because they are genuine. Mini-Summary: Don't copy others. Develop a natural, authentic style that reflects your personality and strengths. Conclusion: How do guidelines transform your presentation career? Public speaking is not an optional skill—it defines leadership impact. By applying nine guidelines—using notes, avoiding reading, focusing on key points, backing claims with evidence, knowing more than you say, rehearsing, using visuals wisely, controlling nerves, and being authentic—professionals protect and elevate their personal brands. Key Takeaways: Notes guide, but don't read word-for-word. Memorise ideas, not sentences. Use evidence to back claims and build authority. Rehearse with feedback for confidence. Visuals should enhance, not clutter. Control nerves with breathing and energy rituals. Authenticity beats imitation every time. Leaders at all levels should take action now: seek training, rehearse deliberately, and present with authenticity. Don't waste years avoiding public speaking. The sooner you embrace it, the faster your leadership brand grows. About the Author Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie “One Carnegie Award” (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban “Hito o Ugokasu” Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). Greg also publishes daily business insights on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, and hosts six weekly podcasts. On YouTube, he produces The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews, widely followed by executives seeking success strategies in Japan.

John O'Loughlin, global trade and customs partner with PWC joined us to explain what it means for the EU.

En bonusepisode fra E24-redaksjonen. I Sverige er det kult å være gründer, i Finland er det kult å være lærer, men hva er det kult å være i Norge? Vi fikk med oss Cilia Holmes Indahl, leder for EQT Foundation, Randi Marjamaa, sjef for Nordea i Norge og Leif Arne Jensen, sjef for PwC i Norge i E24s livestudio på Oslo Business Forum. Her snakker vi om hva som trengs for vekst i norsk næringsliv fremover, som viser seg å være en blanding av kapital, innovasjon og gründerskap.

In a late night post, Donald Trump announced 100% tariffs pharmaceutical products. However, there was very little detail provided in his 62 word post. All to discuss with John O'Loughlin, Partner Responsible for Global Trade and Customs, PWC.

A video of this podcast is available on YouTube, Spotify, or PwC's website at viewpoint.pwc.comIn this episode, we explore insights from PwC's Global Sustainability Reporting Survey featuring nearly 500 executives worldwide. Recorded during New York City Climate Week, the conversation highlights how companies are using sustainability data to drive strategy, respond to stakeholder pressure, and prepare for evolving regulations.In this episode, we discuss:1:14 – Key takeaways from New York City Climate Week3:40 – Overview of PwC's Global Sustainability Reporting Survey and its purpose8:42 – How companies are using sustainability data to inform risk, resilience, and opportunity11:14 – Lessons from early reporters: tech adoption, resource needs, and AI use14:14 – The demand for transparencyLooking for more on PwC's 2025 Global Sustainability Reporting Survey? Check out From insight to value: The sustainability reporting journey continuesAbout our guestNadja Picard is PwC's Global Reporting Leader. She leads PwC's initiative to help clients transform their reporting both to meet investor and stakeholder demands for trusted reporting and to unlock business value from new data sets, including sustainability. Nadja also advises companies on the accounting, corporate reporting, and investor relations requirements in advance of capital markets transactions, especially Initial Public Offerings.About our guest hostDiana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Welcome back to the EUCVC Summit Talks, where we bring you candid conversations with Europe's leading founders, corporate leaders, and investors shaping the future of venture collaboration.In this episode, Florian Noell, Partner at PwC, and Gina Domanig, Managing Partner at Emerald Technology Ventures, join Andreas Munk Holm to explore why limited partner (LP) investing is emerging as the smartest entry point for corporates entering venture.From accessing deal flow and ecosystems to building internal conviction and avoiding common mistakes, Florian and Gina share their playbooks for making LP positions deliver both financial returns and strategic impact.

Over 1.6 billion contactless point of sale (POS) payments, valued at €28.3 billion, were made in shops, restaurants and other retail outlets in the 12 months to June 2025, according to the latest payments analysis published today in Banking & Payments Federation Ireland's (BPFI) Payments Monitor. The report reveals that contactless payments accounted for 87.9% of all POS card payments in H1 2025, with more than half of all contactless payments now made using mobile wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay, rather than cards. Speaking on the publication of the latest Payments Monitor, Gillian Byrne, Head of Payments, BPFI, stated: "Looking at the payments trends in today's report, we can see that contactless payments continue to be very popular with Irish consumers, accounting for almost nine out of ten point of sale (POS) card payments made in shops, restaurants and other retail outlets in Ireland in the first half of 2025. The use of smartphones and watches is growing in popularity and is the preferred payment device over physical cards for many consumers. Some 58.2% of contactless payments were made using mobile wallets rather than cards in the first half of 2025 (58.8% in Q2 2025), up from 52% in the same period of 2024. Overall, there were almost 454 million mobile wallet payments in Ireland on Irish cards in H1 2025, up 19.7% on the same period in 2024." Adoption of mobile wallet payments varies by region Looking at regional variations, Ms Byrne added: "Dublin had the highest number of contactless and mobile wallet payments per capita in Ireland at 392 and 238, respectively, in the twelve months ending June 2025, accounting for 39.1% of all contactless payments and 41.8% of mobile wallet payments. Carlow had the second-highest number of contactless payments per capita at 339, followed by Limerick with 299 and Waterford with 289. By contrast, Roscommon had the lowest contactless per capita at 139, behind Offaly with 148 and Monaghan at 157." As cash usage declines, digital euro plans will be key Ms Byrne continued: "As the popularity of contactless payments has grown, cash usage has fallen in recent years, with less than half of POS payments in Ireland made in cash in 2024, according to European Central Bank (ECB) survey data, down from about 54% two years earlier. While cash remains of vital importance to many people, a recent consumer survey commissioned by BPFI shows that 7% of consumers say they don't use cash, while most use it for small payments, with 54% holding less than €50 cash on hand. The ECB has noted the limitations of physical cash in an increasingly digital world and is seeking to complement it with a digital form of cash - the digital euro." "However, there is still some uncertainty as to how a digital euro will work, reflected in the fact that almost one in four (23%) said that they did not plan to use the digital euro, and 14% of consumers said they didn't know how much digital euro they expected to hold. When asked how they would use the digital euro, just under half of respondents stated they would be likely or very likely to use a digital euro for online purchases, sending money to friends or family or for POS payments. The ECB is expected to announce the next steps for the digital euro shortly, although it is likely we will see the rollout of digital euro wallets by banks in the years to come. However, the results of today's research points to the need for raising greater consumer awareness of the digital euro and how consumers could benefit from using it in the future." Efficiency and consumer experience must remain priorities for digital euro rollout She concluded: "Meanwhile, a recent PwC study commissioned by the European Credit Sector Associations estimates that implementing the digital euro could cost euro area banks about €18 billion - before ongoing running costs and enhancements are factored in. The focus must be on efficiency and long-term viability, giving banks and payment providers the...

Significant developments are underway at the PCAOB. In this episode, we provide an overview on the latest changes, what's on the horizon, and the potential implications for preparers. Our guest is Brian Croteau, PwC's US Chief Auditor, who leads our team that follows all things PCAOB. In this episode, we discuss: 3:14 – A historical perspective on the PCAOB10:01 – Leadership changes at the SEC and PCAOB21:05 – Standard setting projects and priorities33:05 – Standard setting related to emerging technologies (e.g., AI, crypto)37:28 – Potential changes to the PCAOB's inspection program Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop. About our guest Brian Croteau is the US Chief Auditor. He oversees the establishment and maintenance of PwC's audit policies and practices, leads efforts to directly support PwC's audit quality objectives, and plays a key role in the monitoring and assessment of audit quality. He also leads the firm's efforts related to its relationship with the PCAOB, including supporting all aspects of the PCAOB's inspection process. Brian currently serves as a member of the PCAOB's Standards and Emerging Issues Advisory Group (SEIAG) and the SEIAG's Emerging Issues in Auditing subcommittee. Prior to rejoining PwC, he served as the Deputy Chief Accountant of the Professional Practice Group within the Office of the Chief Accountant at the SEC where he played a key role in the SEC's oversight of the activities of the PCAOB, managed the resolution of auditor independence issues and ethical matters, and monitored audit and independence standard setting internationally. About our guest host Diana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group. Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

23 Sep 2025. Presight CEO Thomas Pramotedham revealed the news live on The Business Breakfast, outlining how the fund aims to back cutting-edge AI ventures across multiple sectors. Plus, Dubai’s FDI streak continues with over 640 new projects in H1 2025, we asked HSBC’s Simon Williams if Abu Dhabi is catching up. And PwC is moving its annual green energy summit to Abu Dhabi. We spoke to their Head of Energy Transition about what it signals for the UAE’s sustainability push.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My Story   Talk 27  More Activities in Europe Welcome to Talk 27 in our series where I'm reflecting on God's goodness to me throughout my life. Last time I was talking about our off-campus activities while we were at Mattersey. I began by talking about activities in Britain and concluded with our activities in Europe, particularly in connection with EPTA, the European Pentecostal Theological Association. Today we'll be saying more about Europe, first with regard to our activities in the Pentecostal European Fellowship, and then about my preaching in national leaders' conferences as well as in local churches. The Pentecostal European Fellowship As I have already explained, PEF was formed as a result of a merger between PEC and EPF. Little did I know when I accepted the invitation to preach at the PEC conference in 1978 that it would eventually lead not only to the founding of EPTA but also to a ministry within PEF itself, and ultimately to representing Europe on the Presidium of the Pentecostal World Conference. Because of my experience in Europe, I was first asked by the AoG Executive Council, as its chairman, to represent AoG on the PEF committee. Jakob Zopfi from Swtizerland had been its chairman for many years and, after Reinhold Ulonska retired as vice-chairman, the PEF Committee elected me to take his place. Major features of the work of PEF were the conferences it usually held once every three years. Thousands of people from all over Europe came to these conferences, though the majority on each occasion came from the country that was hosting it. Relatively few, however, came from the UK. This may have been because of the cost of crossing the channel, or even because the preaching was always done through an interpreter which English speaking people often find it hard to get used to. After preaching at the conference in The Hague in 1978, the next PEF conference we attended was in Böblingen near Stuttgart in 1984, but not in any official capacity. Eileen and I went on to attend conferences in Jönköping, (Sweden, 1991), Bordeaux (France, 1994), Fridek-Mistek (Czech Republic, 1997), Helsinki (Finland, 2000), and Berlin (Germany, 2003). There are many towns in Sweden with a name ending in -koping. It's connected with our English word shopping and is roughly equivalent to market. It was at Jönköping (pronounced yernsherping) that I was appointed to serve as Vice Chairman of PEF. We travelled there by car, which may seem surprising bearing in mind the distance, but it meant that Eileen could come with me, and the trip would cost no more than the price of one air ticket for me. And it turned out that, as most of the delegates had arrived by plane, there was little transport available between the hotel and the conference centre. This meant that we were able to transport Dr Ray Hughes, who was the chairman of the Pentecostal World Conference and the guest speaker from America, to and from the meetings. It gave him the opportunity to get to know us and may have been partly the reason why the following year I was appointed to serve on the PWC advisory committee, and eventually as a member of its presidium. We also travelled by car to the Bordeaux conference in 1994, combining it with a holiday exploring south-western France and visiting Castera Verduzan in Gascony, and Mauléon-Licharre and Eaux Bonnes in the Pyrenees. The conference was particularly significant for Eileen because she was the wife of the Vice-Chairman. This normally carried no specific responsibility, but Sylvia Zopfi, the wife of the Chairman, had broken her leg and was unable to attend. Consequently, it fell to Eileen to preside at a meal for ladies, most of whom were French speaking. Of course there was an interpreter, but Eileen never saw herself as an ‘up front' person and was understandably nervous. Because it was a meal for ladies, I was unable to attend, but I found out later that Herman von Ameron, the husband of the guest speaker, had crept in at the back. So I asked him privately how Eileen had got on, and he replied, She was magnificent. She was like the Queen! Following the political reforms known as perestroika introduced by Russian President Mikhail Gorbachov in the late 1980s, Czechoslovakia was divided into two separated nations, the Czech Republic (or Czechia) and Slovakia. Fridek-Mistek was the venue chosen for the 1997 PEF conference, because it lies on the border of these two countries and so provided delegates from both equal opportunities to attend. Once again, Eileen and I travelled by car, taking extra care in Czechia not to exceed the speed limit, as we'd heard that the Czech police were likely to impose heavy fines on foreigners for any minor infringement. We took the opportunity to visit Prague, a beautiful city, for a weekend before travelling on to the conference. It was now almost 20 years since I had first preached at the conference in The Hague, but for the next decade I was to become a regular speaker with the special responsibility of preaching on the Baptism in the Holy Spirit and praying for people to receive. Sadly there are still many people who attend Pentecostal churches who have not yet come into the experience and in a conference where thousands are in attendance the numbers coming forward for prayer were likely to be enormous. Pentecostal pastors often seem reluctant to teach on the subject, possibly because they are frightened that, when they lay hands on those they pray for, they will not begin to speak in tongues. So I felt the need to preach not only to the people, but also to the pastors. And at Fridek-Mistek I decided to pray for the pastors before I prayed for the people. I asked all the pastors who wanted the Lord to use them in laying hands on people to receive the baptism, to come forward first. I explained that I would pray for them first so that they could then join with me in praying for the people. Dozens of pastors came forward and after I had prayed for them I asked them to turn round and face the congregation. I then called the people to come forward. Hundreds came and each pastor had a queue of people to pray for. Of course, it's impossible to know how many spoke in tongues for the first time, especially in a meeting where so many different languages are spoken! And, even with the people I personally prayed for, there was no way of knowing if they were speaking in tongues or if they were just praying in their own native language. But one thing was particularly noteworthy. When teaching on the baptism I have always been careful to stress that the evidence we are expecting is tongues, not tingles – or shaking, or falling over, or anything else that has no clear biblical basis! However, when one of the people I prayed for did fall over, there was an immediate reaction in the queue next to mine. People started to move into my queue. Perhaps they felt that, despite all I had said, they would somehow get something extra if they fell over! There is still a desperate need for teaching on this throughout the Pentecostal movement and the charismatic renewal worldwide. After the conference we drove into Austria and stayed in an apartment in the church in Bad Ischl where Klaus Winter, the PEF treasurer, was the pastor. I preached in his church and we had a wonderful ten days there exploring Salzburg and the Salzkammergut, the wonderful area where The Sound of Music was filmed. The Helsinki conference was held in the summer of the year 2000 but was preceded by an EPTA conference held in Kaggeholme near Stockholm. We travelled by car as far as Kaggeholme but after EPTA we parked it at Arlanda airport and flew to Helsinki. As Jakob Zopfi was unable to attend because of an illness, it was my responsibility to chair the conference. I also preached on the baptism in the Holy Spirit and, as at Fridek-Mistek, had the privilege of praying for many who were seeking. Shortly after that Jakob Zopfi retired as the PEF chairman and I confess that I was rather relieved not to be appointed as his successor. I too was soon to retire from Mattersey and frankly I didn't want the responsibility. Ingolf Ellsel, a younger man who was the leader of the BFP in Germany, was appointed as chairman, and I was happy to continue to serve as vice chairman. In 2003 the conference was held in Berlin in June. En route we stopped at Liège preaching there over the weekend. We reached Berlin in good time for the conference travelling at times at almost 150 m.p.h. on the autobahns where there was no speed limit. We stayed in a hotel on the outskirts of Berlin in Spandau, famous for its ballet company, and travelled in by underground train to the conference meetings. As in previous years I preached and prayed for people to receive the baptism and hundreds came forward. When Ingolf Ellsel asked who had spoken in tongues for the first time it seemed like just about everybody who had been prayed for raised their hand. It was experiences like this that were undoubtedly the reason why I was asked to speak at so many churches and conferences for national leaders. Churches and National Leaders' Conferences During the years I was at Mattersey I spoke at several national leaders' conferences as well as ministering in local churches. Most of the teaching I did at national conferences centred on the baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit and how to encourage them at local church level.  These included Germany and Hungary (1989), Iceland (1990), Austria (1999), Belgium (2003) and France (2004) where I was required to preach six times in French on a variety of topics.   The conference was held in Léognan, near Bordeaux, and close to the site of the ADD Bible College. (ADD Assemblées de Dieu i.e. AoG). I taught several sessions in the college in the week preceding the conference and then preached at a youth event held in a marquee in the college grounds. This was an occasion where I really needed the Lord to help me. Of course we always need his help, but this time even more so. I had completely forgotten that I was scheduled to be the speaker at this event, so I said to the principal of the college,             I don't really need to be at the youth meeting this afternoon, do I? To which he replied,             Mais si, vous êtes le prédicteur! (But yes, you are the preacher!) But I had nothing prepared, and I had never preached to young people in French before. Fortunately, several of my books have been translated into French including The Holy Spirit – an Introduction. I had little more than an hour before the meeting began and so, helped the French text of the section on the fruit of the Spirit, I hurriedly prepared a message on this, using examples from the life of Jesus. And the Lord really blessed it. Dozens of young people came forward responding to the appeal to seek to rededicate their lives to Christ. That really encouraged me as the I was preaching in the thousand strong assembly in Bordeaux where Daniel Hébert, whom I had met through PEF, was the pastor. But before leaving the subject of national conferences I need to mention that it was at that conference that David Cizéron gave me a book about his father's work in a part of France I had never heard of, something which will become relevant in a later talk. As far as preaching in local churches is concerned, there are of course far too many to mention them all. I have already talked about my trips to Sweden when I preached in local churches as well as teaching in Bible Colleges. One highlight of these trips was preaching in the Filadelfia church in Stockholm founded by the renowned Pentecostal pioneer, Lewi Pethrus (whose name, incidentally, features immediately before mine in the International Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements). Another highlight was travelling with Eileen to Kristinehamn at the northern end of Lake Vänern, the largest lake in Sweden, and preaching for a week for Paul Gren, one of our former Mattersey students. Germany was another country I also visited frequently. My contact with Germany came from three different though interrelated sources – EPTA which I have already mentioned, the national leaders of the Volksmission group of churches, and the local church in Heidenheim. Herbert Ros and Günter Kaupp were president and vice-president of Volksmission and had both been students at Kenley under the principalships of Donald Gee and John Carter respectively. They both had a great respect for what we were doing at Mattersey and over the years sent us a good number of excellent students who, after they had returned to Germany to take up pastorates there, invited us to minister for them whenever we were in Germany. It was also through my contacts with the leadership of Volksmission that I was invited on several occasions to travel round the churches for a couple of weeks often preaching for just one evening in each church. I was usually accompanied by Eileen, who loved travelling with me and enjoying the beautiful scenery of southern Germany and the warm hospitality we received in homes wherever we went. We undertook such trips in 1998, and 1999, when I was also the guest speaker at the BFP national leaders' conference. (BFP was the wider Pentecostal movement in Germany of which Volksmission had become a part). We made similar trips in 1994, '95, and '96. But it was the church at Heidenheim that we visited most frequently. The pastor there was Albert Bühler. In the early eighties his son-in-law Jürgen Single had heard about a youth camp we were holding at Mattersey during the summer vacation and asked if he could visit it with a coachload of young people from their church as they were arranging a tour of England. We were delighted to receive them and that was the beginning of a lovely relationship we enjoyed with the Bühler-Single family and the church in Heidenheim. We also visited Luxembourg on several occasions due to our relationship with John and Ann Leese who, as AoG missionaries, did an amazing job over many years planting a church there. John had been a student at Kenley when I first started teaching there. We first visited them for a weekend with William and Anthea Kay in 1990 and then again for a holiday in '92 with our daughter Debbie, her husband David, and their one-year-old daughter, Emily, who was our first grandchild. We have visited them many times since including 2001 when John asked me to take care of the preaching (in French, not Luxembourgish) while he and Ann were on holiday. It's also through our contact with Luxembourg that some of my books were translated into French. I will always be grateful to Caroline Hutin, a French schoolteacher who specialised in English, who spent many hours translating You'd Better Believe It, Body Builders, and Just a Taste of Heaven. Having these available was very helpful when I was preaching or teaching in French-speaking countries like France and Belgium. I am so grateful to the Lord that people have enjoyed my teaching and have usually wanted to know more. And my books, in whatever language, have made that possible. My ministry in Belgium was concentrated largely in and around Brussels, at the Continental Theological Seminary where I taught regularly for several years, and at the Christian Centre which held services in both English and French. Daniel Costanza, the pastor of the French speaking church, has used my books as a basis for teaching various courses of Bible study. Jacques Dernelle, who teaches regular courses at CTS, also pastors a great church in Tubize where I have also had the privilege of teaching and preaching. And on at least two occasions I visited Liège and gave a series of teaching which seemed to be well appreciated by the people there. In France where we frequently went on holiday we always sought to attend the nearest ADD church on Sunday mornings and I was often asked to preach. I remember preaching in Versailles, Pau, Mourrenx, Clermont-Ferrand, and Toulouse. However, in Embrun they didn't know who I was and anyway there was already a guest preacher, a French pastor, Samuel Foucart, from Pavilly near Rouen. I enjoyed his preaching and spoke with him afterwards. We exchanged contact details and as a result I was invited in the year 2000 to do a week's teaching on the Holy Spirit. Countries I visited only once or twice during this period were Austria, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, and Italy. In 1982 at the invitation of Carl Pocklington we went to Austria for a week and I preached in Villach and Klagenfürt. And in 2000 I taught for a few days in the church in Linz where Eddie Griesfelder was the pastor. On two occasions I preached for a week in Messina in Sicily where Giuseppe Melusso was the pastor of large AoG church. In 1991 I preached in Reykjavik (Iceland), and in Nokia (Finland) where Teuvo Valkama, one of our former students was the pastor. And in 2002 I preached in Copenhagen (Denmark) and Limerick in Ireland. I look back on all these experiences with great joy and a profound sense of gratitude to the Lord for the privilege of declaring his word in so many places and to so many people. Next time we'll be talking about our service for the Lord beyond Europe.

This week, we talk with Gabe Pereyra, President and co-founder at Harvey, about his path from DeepMind and Google Brain to launching Harvey with Winston Weinberg; how a roommate's real-world legal workflows met early GPT-4 access and OpenAI backing; why legal emerged as the right domain for large models; and how personal ties to the profession plus a desire to tackle big societal problems shaped a mission to apply advanced AI where language and law intersect.Gabe's core thesis lands hard, “the models are the product.” Rather than narrow tools for single tasks, Harvey opted for a broad assistant approach. Lawyers live in text and email, so dialog becomes the control surface, an “AI associate” supporting partners and teams. Early demos showed useful output across many tasks, which reinforced a generalist design, then productized connections into Outlook and Word, plus a no-code Workflow Builder.Go-to-market strategy flipped the usual script. Instead of starting small, Harvey partnered early with Allen & Overy and leaders like David Wakeling. Large firms supplied layered review, which reduced risk from model errors and increased learning velocity. From there the build list grew, security and data privacy, dedicated capacity, links to firm systems, case law, DMS, data rooms, and eDiscovery. A matter workspace sits at the center. Adoption rises with surface area, with daily activity approaching seventy percent where four or more product surfaces see regular use. ROI work now includes analysis of write-offs and specialized workflows co-built with firms and clients, for example Orrick, A&O, and PwC.Talent, training, and experience value come next. Firms worry about job paths, and Gabe does not duck that concern. Models handle complex work, which raises anxiety, yet also shortens learning curves. Harvey collaborates on curricula using past deals, plus partnerships with law schools. Return on experience shows up in recruiting, PwC reports stronger appeal among early-career talent, and quality-of-life gains matter. On litigation use cases, chronology builders require firm expertise and guardrails, with evaluation methods that mirror how senior associates review junior output. Frequent use builds a mental model for where errors tend to appear.Partnerships round out the strategy. Research content from LexisNexis and Wolters Kluwer, work product in iManage and NetDocuments, CLM workflows via Ironclad, with plans for data rooms, eDiscovery, and billing. Vision extends to a complete matter management service, emails, documents, prior work, evaluation, billing links, and strict ethical walls, all organized by client-matter. Global requirements drive multi-region storage and controls, including Australia's residency rules. The forward look centers on differentiation through customization, firms encode expertise into models, workflows, and agents, then deliver outcomes faster and at software margins. “The value sits in your people,” Gabe says, and firms that convert know-how into systems will lead the pack.Listen on mobile platforms:  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ |  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[Special Thanks to ⁠Legal Technology Hub⁠ for their sponsoring this episode.] ⁠⁠⁠Email: geekinreviewpodcast@gmail.comMusic: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jerry David DeCicca⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Transcript

Conflict at work doesn't have to be scary. In this episode of Influence & Impact for Leaders, I talk with Alice Driscoll and Louise Van Haarst, authors of Smart Conflict, about why avoiding tough conversations harms teams — and how to do them better. You'll hear the difference between task and relational conflict, learn their 5R model (Reflection, Regulation, Readiness, Response, Repair) and pick up quick, practical tips you can use to calm my nerves, land your message and repair relationships. Alice Driscoll and Louise van Haarst are the founders of The Power House, a global leadership development and cultural transformation business on a mission to unlock human and organisational potential. They work with organisations including BBC Studios, PwC, Deutsche Bank, LVMH, Johnson & Johnson, ProperCorn, Bethnal Green Ventures and Zinc VC. Their new book ‘Smart Conflict - how to have hard conversations at work' is a highly practical, evidence-based guide to getting good at conflict and hard conversations at work. Whether your default conflict style is avoidant, inflexible or aggressive, this book will give you the tools to embrace Smart Conflict and transform your leadership, your team and maybe your life. This is Influence & Impact for Leaders, the podcast that helps leaders like you increase your impact and build a happy and high performing team. Each episode delivers focused, actionable insights you can implement immediately, to be better at your job without working harder. Resources mentioned in this episode: Buy Smart Conflict, How to have hard conversations at work:  https://mybook.to/SmartConflict   Download free resources including our read-along workbook: https://thepowerhouse.company/resources Take the default conflict style and team diagnostics:  https://thepowerhouse.company/diagnostics LinkedIn: Alice Driscoll LinkedIn: Louise van Haarst Work with Carla: Impactful Teams Scorecard – Discover how your team measures up and how you can grow your team's impact. 1:1 Leadership Coaching with Carla – get support to help you get your voice heard at work and develop your career. Book a discovery call

I am super excited because this is our 200th episode and what better way to celebrate this milestone, than to hear from four of my clients and their career successes as a result of working with me! Today I am absolutely delighted to introduce you to Gill, Jen, Jaime and Isabel, four fabulous clients of mine who have taken control of their careers and been rewarded with some phenomenal results, like:Senior leadership promotionsSuccessful salary negotiationsExpanded confidence communicating and influencing senior leaders Defining their value propositions to their organisations and stepping upBuilding visibility and credibilityBuilding tremendous confidence and clarity of their pathsAnd chasing their goals down, to create fresh career opportunities, fasterThank you to Gill, Jen, Jaime and Isabel for sharing their stories with us!And I am so delighted that we have been able to bring this podcast, Her Ambitious Career, to you every week for the last 4 years! It's been a pleasure and we can't wait to see you when we hit our next big milestone!Links:Take that first step and speak with Rebecca: Book a free 15-minute Career Strategy CallRate, Review, & Follow our Show on Apple Podcasts:Also, if you haven't done so already, follow the podcast. We air every week and I don't want you to miss out on a single broadcast. Follow now!About Rebecca:Rebecca Allen is a Career & Leadership Coach for corporate women, aspiring to senior levels of leadership. Over the last decade, Rebecca has helped women realise their potential at companies including Woolworths, ANZ, J.P. Morgan, PwC, Coca-Cola Amatil, Ministry of Defence, Frontier Sensing and AbbVie Medical Research through her Roadmap to Senior Leadership coaching programs. Connect with Rebecca

In part two, a PWC receiver says businesses should be wary of making big up front investment in a climate of high insolvencies. Then, friends of the Onehunga Community House are taking a trip down memory lane, holding an afternoon tea "like your grandmother used to have" - think scones, asparagus rolls, the works.

From Classroom to Community – the official podcast of the Signal to Soar campaign, underwritten by Hughes, an Echostar company – shines a spotlight on the tremendous difference connectivity can make for schools, especially those isolated by terrain and other factors, and how connectivity via satellite transforms the communities that surround those schools. When a remote school connects for the first time, everything changes. Students gain access to global knowledge, and teachers tap into new tools. Families and communities begin to share in the benefits. In the first episode of our series, we hear more on this topic from Germán Otálora, Director of Microsoft's Airband Program for Latin America. Germán Otálora is the Director of Microsoft's Airband Program for Latin America, a role in which he dedicates most of his time to building partnerships between the public and private sectors, NGOs, and academia to bring purposeful connectivity to underserved rural communities across the region. He joined Microsoft in 2015 after a successful career in consulting, working for multinational firms such as PwC, where he led a team of over 30 consultants. As an avid traveler, Germán is well-acquainted with the economic and social realities of rural Latin America and has received several awards and recognitions for his hard work and dedication to connecting the unconnected. Germán holds a degree in Industrial Design (2001) and an MBA (2015) from Universidad de Los Andes. He currently lives in Bogotá, Colombia, with his wife, two children, and their Boston Terrier named Lupita.

Blake and David examine several major developments affecting the accounting profession, including the proposed HIRE Act that would impose a 25% excise tax on offshore labor payments to accounting firms. They also look at how AI is transforming hiring practices at major firms like PwC, which is cutting graduate recruitment due to advancing technology and explore practical AI implementation strategies for accounting firms, moving beyond basic chatbots to integrated workflows. The show wraps up with a story about fraud at The Epoch Times - a $67 million money laundering scheme - and the ongoing costs of bad social media tax advice. SponsorsOnPay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/onpayRelay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/relay TeamUp - http://accountingpodcast.promo/teamupChapters(00:00) - Introduction and Personal Updates (00:48) - AI in Accounting: Challenges and Opportunities (04:57) - The Higher Act: Taxing Offshore Labor (05:23) - Feel-Good Story: The Oldest Marching Band Member (10:23) - Impact of AI on Job Market (26:33) - Gambling Scandal and AI in Government (36:22) - Expense Management Simplified (38:29) - Supreme Court and Tariffs Update (42:37) - Red Lobster's Downfall: A Case Study (45:37) - The Role of AI in Accounting Firms (01:03:04) - Epic Times CFO Charged with Money Laundering (01:08:38) - Conclusion and Announcements  Show NotesNew Moreno Bill Would Crack Down on Outsourcing, Fund American Workers - Senator Bernie Moreno https://www.moreno.senate.gov/press-releases/new-moreno-bill-would-crack-down-on-outsourcing-fund-american-workers/HIRE Act - A BILL https://www.moreno.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/The-HIRE-Act.pdfMoreno Bill to Crackdown on Foreign Outsourcing Blocked by Senate Democrats - Senator Bernie Moreno https://www.moreno.senate.gov/press-releases/moreno-bill-to-crackdown-on-foreign-outsourcing-blocked-by-senate-democrats/Offshoring is Screwed If This HIRE Act Thing Goes Anywhere But Let's Not Get Too Excited Yet - Going Concern https://www.goingconcern.com/offshoring-is-screwed-if-this-hire-act-thing-goes-anywhere-but-lets-not-get-too-excited-yet/PwC's U.K. chief admits he's cutting back entry-level jobs and taking a 'watch and wait' approach to see how AI changes work | Fortune https://fortune.com/2025/09/08/pwc-uk-chief-cutting-entry-level-junior-gen-z-jobs-ai-economic-headwinds-like-amazon-salesforce/AI takes entry-level jobs as Big Four slash graduate hiring https://bmmagazine.co.uk/news/big-four-cut-graduate-jobs-ai/PwC Cuts Graduate Hiring as AI Reshapes Entry-Level Careers - TechStory https://techstory.in/pwc-cuts-graduate-hiring-as-ai-reshapes-entry-level-careers/IRS assesses $162 million in penalties over false tax credit claims tied to social media | Internal Revenue Service https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/irs-assesses-162-million-in-penalties-over-false-tax-credit-claims-tied-to-social-mediaSocial media claims cost taxpayers $162M, IRS says. See the 'tips' to avoid https://thehill.com/homenews/5492263-social-media-claims-cost-taxpayers-162m-irs-says-see-the-tips-to-avoid/IRS warns taxpayers: Social media advice can lead to costly penalties https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news/2025/sep/irs-warns-taxpayers-social-media-advice-can-lead-to-costly-penalties/Dirty Dozen: Taking tax advice on social media can be bad news for taxpayers; inaccurate or misleading tax information circulating | Internal Revenue Service https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-taking-tax-advice-on-social-media-can-be-bad-news-for-taxpayers-inaccurate-or-misleading-tax-information-circulatingAlbania appoints world's first AI government 'minister' to root out corruption | Euronews https://www.euronews.com/next/2025/09/12/albania-appoints-worlds-first-ai-government-minister-to-root-out-corruptionDiella (AI system) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diella_(AI_system)Epoch Times embroiled in alleged cryptocurrency money laundering scheme - The Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/media/2024/06/04/epoch-times-money-laundering-cryptocurrency/CFO of Falun Gong-linked Epoch Times arrested and accused of role in $67m multinational money laundering scheme | Fortune https://fortune.com/2024/06/04/cfo-weidong-bill-guan-falun-gong-epoch-times-arrested-67m-multinational-money-laundering-scheme/The only recap of Red Lobster's downfall you need https://thetakeout.com/red-lobster-endless-shrimp-private-equity-downfall-recapNeed CPE?Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.comGet in TouchThanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and wr...

Wade Sutton (PwC's Washington National Tax Services - International Tax Services Leader) is joined by Pat Brown, an ITS Partner and Co-Leader of PwC's Washington National Tax Services practice. Pat previously served as the US Treasury's Associate International Tax Counsel and has been a frequent guest on the podcast. Wade and Pat take a deeper dive into the future of Pillar Two, focusing on the G7's ‘side-by-side' agreement.  They highlight the historical positions of previous US administrations, why  proposed Section 899  was dropped from OBBBA, US dissatisfaction with the lack of accommodations for the US GILTI regime and R&D tax credits, the OECD process and how countries could implement changes, and the potential for simplification including a potential permanent safe harbor. Finally, they look to the future and what may happen next. 

Perpetua's Pooja Tanna unpacks last night's FOMO rate call and Fed chair Powell's remarks. Prescient's Vishal Rama weighs in on the MPC decision later today – could the stronger-than-expected August CPI open the door to a rate cut? PwC's Basheena Bhoola on their new Telecommunications Sentiment Index, revealing service and network quality as customers' top priorities.

PwC partner Basheena Bhoola shares new insights from the PwC SA Telecommunications Sentiment Index.

Artificial intelligence could fuel Alberta's next big tech boom. Three leaders in the field—Cam Linke, CEO of Amii; Nicole Janssen, co-founder of AltaML; and Danielle Gifford, managing director of AI with PwC—dig into how AI is transforming everything from energy to healthcare and even space. They share why Edmonton is a world leader in reinforcement learning, and why Alberta's natural advantages could make it a global hub for data centres and AI commercialization.    This podcast is generously supported by Don Archibald. The Hub thanks him for his ongoing support.   The Hub is Canada's fastest-growing independent digital news outlet. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to get our latest videos: https://www.youtube.com/@TheHubCanada Subscribe to The Hub's podcast feed to get our best content when you are on the go: https://tinyurl.com/3a7zpd7e (Apple)  https://tinyurl.com/y8akmfn7 (Spotify)   Want more Hub? Get a FREE 3-month trial membership on us: https://thehub.ca/free-trial/ Follow The Hub on X: https://x.com/thehubcanada?lang=en   CREDITS: Falice Chin - Producer and Editor  Ryan Hastman - Host Amal Attar-Guzman - Sound and Video Assistant   To contact us, sign up for updates, and access transcripts email support@thehub.ca

Title: Inside the Secret Network That Billionaires Use to Pay Zero In Taxes with Alex Sonkin Summary: In this episode of Raise the Bar Radio, Seth Bradley welcomes Alex, founder of the Due Diligence Project, to discuss the massive blind spot in tax strategy among CPAs and how his peer-reviewed CPA community solves that. Alex shares how traditional CPA firms, despite servicing ultra-high net worth clients, are often unaware of the vast number of advanced tax mitigation strategies available. His platform introduces vetted tax strategies reviewed by hundreds of independent CPA firms, much like an Amazon or Netflix model for financial services. Rather than relying on static, siloed in-house teams with mediocre solutions, Alex's vision is to empower CPAs and family offices through a Virtual Family Office model. This allows affluent individuals (not just billionaires) to access world-class, peer-reviewed tax and financial planning strategies while maintaining their trusted CPA relationship. The conversation emphasizes humility, proactive due diligence, and massive action as critical principles for success in tax planning and entrepreneurship alike. Links to Watch and Subscribe: https://youtu.be/v8RSrMRslHU Bullet Point Highlights: Most CPAs, even in top firms, are not deeply versed in advanced tax mitigation due to limited time and exposure. The Due Diligence Project functions as an independent, peer-reviewed network, allowing CPAs to tap into the collective knowledge of hundreds of top professionals. Traditional large CPA firms and Wall Street structures are siloed and don't provide open-source best-in-class strategies. The future CPA firm is a Virtual Family Office — proactive, advisory-driven, and built with world-class independent specialists instead of static in-house teams. The Virtual Family Office model brings elite wealth management strategies to affluent individuals (e.g., $10M-$50M net worth), not just billionaires. Humility, curiosity, and willingness to collaborate are essential for CPAs and advisors to truly serve clients at the highest level. Success requires massive action and consistent pursuit of better solutions — complacency kills innovation and wealth creation. Transcript: (Seth Bradley) (00:02.094) What's up, Builders? This is Raise the Bar Radio, where we talk about building wealth, raising capital, and all in all, raising the bar in your business and your life. This is the No BS podcast for capital raisers, investors, and entrepreneurs who are serious about scaling their business and living life on their own terms. I'm Seth Bradley, securities attorney, real estate investor, and entrepreneur, bringing you world-class strategies from the best in the game.   If you're ready to raise more capital, close bigger deals, build a better you, and create true financial freedom, you're in the right place. Let's go. Alex, what's going on, brother? Welcome to the show.   Seth, thank you so much for having me. It's a pleasure.   man. Fellow San Diegan. So, appreciate that and appreciate that you you love the weather like I do.   best weather in the world, All of San Diego County, even if it gets like 10 degrees hotter, it's as good or as better anything else on the planet.   (Seth Bradley) (01:05.698) Yep, yep. Sometimes you gotta go outside of San Diego for a little bit to appreciate it because you forget that every single day is fantastic.   We're not going to get into the June gloom and the May gray because people outside of San Diego, don't want to hear that. uh, know, we get to complain between each other. everyone outside of San Diego, were like, we don't want to know about any of your problems.   Right, Exactly, exactly. All right, man. Well, let's just jump right in, Tell everybody a little bit about your background, about your story, and take it back as far as you like.   Sure, graduated University of Michigan Business School undergrad and became an options trader in Chicago as a member of the Chicago Board of Trade, the Mercantile Exchange, Chicago Board of Options Exchange was a market maker down there for many years and came up with a couple ideas and moved to California. What we do now is we have the largest independent peer review community of CPA firms in the country. We support   hundreds of CPA firms who basically introduced their favorite resources, favorite tax attorneys, favorite strategies. And then as a community and independently, everyone independently vets out every strategy, every resource. And we rank and rate all of the strategies, all of the resources. Very similar to what you'd experience in Amazon or Netflix or the streaming services when you watch a movie or you buy a product on Amazon.   (Alex Sonkin) (02:35.534) you're going to go look for the 4.9 out of five stars and do a quick price comparison. So what we did is we've created essentially an independent peer-of-view ranking and rating system for sophisticated tax strategies and then cost mitigation strategies because the tax code is just way too big. No one knows how many pages there are in the tax code. It's constantly changing. we basically, we didn't even know we were doing this at the time because all we were doing was   putting together advanced tax planning institutes, filling them up with CPA firms, bringing speakers, specialists on to present their ideas. But the magic was happening in the hallway conversations between these tax attorneys and the CPAs in these Q &A sessions. And what we realized was that traditional CPA firms really have no clue how many pages are in the tax code, have no idea how many strategies there are that are available to them that have been fully vetted.   And they don't have the time and the resources to fully vet those strategies out. So we just realized we were onto something and we kept building and building and building. And we just had an event. Our last couple summits, diligence project summits had close to 700 CPA firms on one, close to 847 was our largest summit.   The more eyeballs, the more tax-focused CPAs are looking at the strategies and vetting out the strategies, the more refined the due diligence is and the more new resources they're able to introduce to our network. So we're able to go deeper, wider, and more refined in our due diligence when it comes to tax planning.   Yeah, that's awesome. So you you analyze and put a score on the actual strategy itself as well as the firm.   (Alex Sonkin) (04:25.76) Yeah, everything, right? Because you and I both know there's so many moving parts in our business. And when a CPA firm is dealing with their most, their highest net worth clients, billionaires, centi-millionaires, multi-millionaires, and they have, they're selling an appreciated asset, whether it's real estate or their company or shares in another company they've invested in, they want that sale to be tax efficient. Then they might want that money to be invested in other   parts of their portfolio. want that transition to be efficient. They want all the estate planning to be efficient asset to all these different moving parts. But the area where most CPAs and attorneys are the weakest is in the income tax mitigation part. There's a lot of decent estate planning out there, asset protection, other planning. It's really the income tax mitigation part where very few people are excellent at this.   Financial advisors, attorneys have very little experience with tax court, with audit. They should really not be involved in income tax planning. The CPA firms are the ones who are signing the tax returns. They have the experience with audit. They have the experience with tax court. But they're spread so thin just trying to produce tax returns and financial statements and meet all of the deadlines that they have to meet throughout the year. There's actually very little time for them to do proactive tax planning.   and to complete due diligence and even start the due diligence on a tax strategy. Where do we start? Who do we call? How do we find out if the client's going to go to jail? If there's issues with this? They really need to get their confidence level up at a very high level before they call their clients that you really need to look at the strategy and do this. So that's where we really live is we really there to support the tax focused CPA or the family office that's supporting that.   that ultra high net worth family that's led by a tax focused advisor, hopefully a CPA with at least 10,000, 50,000 hours of experience in auditing tax court, where they could look at the notes, look at, part of, join the due diligence project community, look at the notes, look at the strategies, meet the specialists, communicate with other CPAs in our network to really understand the risk reward of.   (Alex Sonkin) (06:48.088) the strategy when it as how it compares to other possible strategies or combination of strategies to bring to their client.   Yeah, yeah. I mean, I love the overall idea of kind of this Amazon marketplace for CPAs and tax firms and tax strategies. It's like, you know, I know when I'm looking for a new accountant or a new CPA with a different group, with a different real estate group or something, you know, I might have done some good business with one CPA and then some that I did not. And I don't have a consistent person to go to at this point. And it also depends on what we're talking about, right? This, the, the speciality of it. it's a   if we're talking W-2 tax mitigation or we're talking about real estate investment or we're talking about some sort of high cash flow entrepreneurial venture, it really depends. One CPA can't necessarily do all that. Maybe a large CPA firm that has all that stuff in house for sure. But when we're talking about your one CPA that you know that's been filing your tax return for the last 20 years, they're not very specialized in these sorts of things.   Here's what's interesting, Seth. You made some interesting points here. Here's what's interesting. Traditionally, people say, I need a CPA. My current CPA firm is not doing the job. That's kind of par for the course. They don't know what's wrong. They know something's wrong because they know that a lot of billionaires aren't paying any taxes. They're paying this 30, 40 % of their income in taxes. They feel something's wrong. So, I need a new CPA firm. So, what do they do? Hey, can you find me a great CPA firm that's local to me? Why is that important?   Why do you need someone that literally that is that's local to you right away? The business owner is already messing up. That is not the most important thing. Okay, then they'll want someone Okay, forget distance. I'm okay with just meeting them virtually. They need to be a specialist in real estate. That's fine Okay, you've got a real estate portfolio there, especially in real estate, but really That's that's a that's another that's a good question, but it's not the best question. It's not gonna get you to the promised land   (Alex Sonkin) (08:52.366) How fluent is that CPA firm in tax strategies? Are they plugged into a network like ours where they have hundreds and hundreds of independent CPA firms, former partners of KPMG, Deloitte, PWC, Ernst & Young, all proactively vetting strategies and introducing, unless you're part of a due diligence network like ours, you might be part of a very, very large CPA firm.   that also is part of other groups, other associations and none of them know, you know, three, four, five different strategies that would be perfect for mitigating taxes in a specific situation. So going to a large firm that has lots of in-house resources, are those resources the best? Do they have access to the best tax attorneys in the country? If those attorneys are in-house working for a CPA firm,   Or let's just say they're working for Jeff Bezos and Jeff Bezos' family office. Seth, do you think the best tax attorney in the country wants to be W-2 working for a CPA firm or working for a family   Right, right.   No, no. So right away, you've already discounted. You are not going to work with the best tax attorneys in the country. You're going to work with a static, the best attorney that's willing to be W-2, working for a CPA firm, working for a family office. If you look at the top 1000 tax attorneys in the country, you might now be working with number 945. Is that what you want to be like? No, no, no, we're fine. Our tax   (Alex Sonkin) (10:29.484) Our tax planning is done by my CPA and they've got this tax attorney that's the 945th best tax attorney in the country in their space. It's like saying, I'm building this orchestra and my trumpet player, instead of getting the very best trumpet player in the world, I have the 945th best trumpet player playing trumpet. You want to put that on your website? You want to market that? think your client's going to be like, this is going to be awesome. I'm going to have the 945th best.   You   (Alex Sonkin) (10:59.138) Resource in that space giving me planning ideas. Whereas I'm a business owner I've had to get to this point to have a tax problem here to overcome all these challenges and now you're gonna bring me a tax planning solution. That's like D minus That's what's going that's puts par for the course. This is what's going on. What we know is 18 % of Fortune 500 companies are zeroing out their tax returns Okay, just listen to this 18 %   of most profitable companies in the world have a team of attorneys and CPAs that zero out their tax return. That means 82 % have no idea what they're doing on a relative basis. those 82%, we're talking about 82 % of the most profitable 500 companies in the world. What we're saying is their tax planning from our vantage point, it's not that it's not good.   It's like average to below average, whereas their revenue and income is off the charts. That's like a big problem. It's like saying, you know what? We have a basketball team where our point guard, our forwards, and our two guard are really good, but our center is like garbage. You know, we've got like a high school level center, and then we have all-stars at all the other positions. That's not gonna work.   Yeah, yeah. mean, why is that? I mean, it's like, you know, they should have access to the best resources. They should be getting advised by the, you know, the top experts in the industry. But, you know, they're just not. Are they not putting the effort? Do they not have access? Do they not know, like, what's the...   Because the difference is when you look at Amazon and you look at Netflix and all the other streaming services that are providing an independent peer-review because back before Amazon and Netflix we had Blockbuster video and we had Barnes and Noble right and we did do diligence very differently going to all the different Blockbuster videos going into Blockbusters and Noble trying to find a book to buy right it's very different experience now we live in this very different world now with   (Alex Sonkin) (13:09.196) independent peer review and all these things. However, the financial services world was created by who? It was created by people like Bernie Madoff. It was created by Wall Street, right? So everything in the financial services world is really created by Wall Street, people like Bernie Madoff. And so Goldman Sachs doesn't want you to know what Morgan Stanley is doing. Morgan Stanley doesn't want you to know what JP Morgan's doing. And so really the financial services realm is   is kind of built in silos. No, come into the Goldman Sachs silo. Come into Ernst & Young. You don't need to worry about what our competitors are doing, what these other CPA firms are doing. We're Ernst & Young, we're Goldman Sachs, we're JP Morgan. You can have the products and services that we have in our back room. So essentially, when you look at JP Morgan, Ernst & Young, Pricewaterhouse, all these huge shops, they're just stores with back rooms. And it's like shopping at a store.   It's like going to Toys R Us. What do we have in Toys R Us? Well, what do we have in our back room? Whereas when you walk into Amazon, what do you have? When you walk into Netflix, you have the full scale universe, open source. So what we've done is we've basically taken the financial services industry and we've created this open source peer-reviewed model. And we started with sophisticated tax planning because that's where most people are really, really bad at it.   And then we've added cost mitigation and other resources. You know, we're not trying to compete with asset management and money managers and all those other, know, certainly we vet those people out. But, you know, there's millions of people that manage money and our financial advisors. And certainly we do our vetting and due diligence on those people. Where we really differentiate ourselves is the income tax planning resources and solutions. Because what we found is the top biggest   most profitable, most famous CPA firms and law firms, that's their blind spot. That's where they're really, really bad because they don't know how many are in the tax code. They don't have the time and the resources and they don't know who to call to actually start and complete a successful due diligence process for sophisticated tax structure.   (Seth Bradley) (15:29.708) Yeah, yeah. So when you say independent peer review, what exactly does that look like? mean, walk me kind of through that and how that works.   I'll show you like this is what you and any let's say if you're a real estate investor right and you're about to sell let's just say a 10 million dollar asset that has nine million dollars of gain in it you're gonna do the same thing that we've done if you're smart what are you gonna do you're gonna go out there and be like what are all the tax strategies that are possible to help me mitigate this huge tax liquidity event right then you're gonna get a bunch of ideas and then what are you gonna do   You're going to show those ideas to your most trusted financial people who are probably your CPA, your lawyer, your advisors, all these other people that you think are financial gurus and really most of them are not even qualified to comment on the tax structure except your tax-focused CPA who has at least 10,000 hours of experience in audit and tax courts. So really you should only bring this to your CPA. But now you brought it to your attorneys and your advisors.   So they're all going to comment on it because they're financial experts even though they have almost zero experience in auditing the tax court. So what do these people do with this idea? Some of them will like, oh, I don't know, just pay your tax. So you're going to get all sorts of answers. Now, you're the business owner. You have no idea how to quantify these answers. So you're really the tax expert trying to manage all this information and trying to be like, what do I do? And what are you going to do?   you're gonna basically go with what your CPA kind of tells you that they're comfortable with. Now your CPA doesn't know all the strategies, so they might know 10 % of the possible strategies. So you're gonna go with the most comfortable strategy that your CPA is comfortable with, that they've completed their due diligence on, which may be strategy number 443 out of the possible thousand strategies that are out there. And now you have the 443rd best idea.   (Alex Sonkin) (17:35.522) that you're implementing and your ROI on that is going to look just like that. Meanwhile, it's taking you all this effort to create $10 million of asset and it's going to take you just like this to completely give away the tax on that because your CPA is not plugged into an independent peer review environment where they can work with other CPAs who have experience with other resources, be able to ask your questions, get your questions answered, maybe ask another round of questions.   But really at that point, you really need to be dealing with the thought leaders in that space, not some local attorney or other CP that also has no clue what's going on. It has no idea how many pages there are.   Got it. So when somebody comes to, you know, they have that issue, right? And they're trying to find the right CPA that can help them with that specific situation and find that number one best tax strategy. You know, what do they do? Do they come to your website to try to find someone in the network? Because anybody in your network can tap into everybody else in your network and find that optimum strategy.   There's really two ways of doing it. They either find a CPA in our network, which is one of the easiest things to do, or they have their trusted CPA plug into our network and complete their due diligence. That's probably the best way because they are this way. This gives them another warm and fuzzy. Hey, I've had this relationship with my CPA for 20, 30 years. I really like them. I understand the challenges that they're under just because they haven't plugged into the network doesn't mean they're a bad CPA or bad person.   It's like having a, you know, I just bought a gold plated cell phone. It's the greatest cell phone iPhones ever produced. But if I don't plug it into Verizon, if I plug it into Bob's telephone network that only works in four locations in America, I'm gonna have this $5,000 cell phone that's basically just a brick that I could just use as a paper holder. But if I have a normal cell phone, I plug it into Verizon and I can make a phone call from anywhere.   (Alex Sonkin) (19:43.298) That's a much better experience. it's not the quality of it. It's partially the quality of the CPA, but it's more so the quality of the network. and certainly these, the CPAs that really are attracted to us are the ones who have these huge hearts that want to do the very, very best for their clients. And they know that they need to pick up every rock and flip over because they know their clients don't want tax returns and financial statements.   They need those. They don't want any of that. What they really want is proactive tax planning ideas. And what the CPAs don't have time for is that. So they have to create time. And we show CPAs how to create that time. We eliminate all, 95 % of the time. It takes them to complete the due diligence because we just show them the notes. We get them 90, 95 % there. Then they take the notes. They take the resources.   They jump into the tax code and then they complete the last 5-10 % of the due diligence process on their own because they're going to have to actually do a little bit of work to get this done. But we've reduced their time and increased their confidence level in completing this project by a factor of 10x, which is a huge value to them because they don't have the time and they don't have the resource to get this work done, but they want to get it   (Seth Bradley) (21:07.616) the interruption, but we don't do ads. Instead, know that if you're raising capital for real estate, my law firm, RaiseLaw, is here to give you the expert legal guidance you need to raise capital compliantly and structure and close your deal. And if you're looking for a done-for-you fund-to-fund solution, Tribest is the industry's only all-in-one setup and fund administration solution. Visit Raise.Law and Tribest.com to learn more.   Right. Yeah. And I can imagine it takes a certain degree of humility, right, from those CPAs to say, I don't know everything. I'm not just going to make up something. I'm not going to make it up. But I'm not going to do kind of half-assed research for a few minutes and tell you I know everything about the subject. Right? Like, I can admit that I don't know everything. I'm not an expert in every single tax strategy.   You nailed it. mean look we do a whole program about the ten pillars of extraordinary due diligence Curiosity is one of them independence is independence versus group think and you nailed one of those pillars. It's it's it's it's humility and You know being curious being humble when you're the tax expert as you know CPA that's been around for 30 years you like I've seen everything right? That's kind of how you feel   But if you have that idea, I've already seen everything. I already know everything. How many people, by the way, how many pages are there in the tax code? I have no idea. Well, that is that's not congruent. What's congruent is I've been in the industry 30, 35 years. Do I know the tax code? I don't know the tax code. It's constantly changing. I'm humble, but I'm working hard. Yeah, there are sections of tax codes that I know, but it would be awesome to be part of independent peer community of hundreds and hundreds of other tax geeks like me.   where we're chewing, know, we're eating this elephant one bite at a time and working together as a community. That's hard working humility. And if you think about it, those are the kind of people that are winning in every, in your profession, in my profession. Think about a basketball player. It's like the best basketball players, they are working to improve their game every day, every month, every year. As soon as you think, oh, I'm the best. Nobody does that. Kobe, Michael.   (Alex Sonkin) (23:25.034) Everyone was constantly improving their game every offseason even though they were achieving they were the grace of the world So when you see a CPA going, I already know everything. I'm not humble run for the hills You're in big trouble   Right, right. So I mean, I can see where this is. This could actually just change everything, right? I mean, it can change. Like if you get enough CPAs on this network and it's kind of the authority, the accepted way that things are done, it could really just change, you know, set the bar, right? So like, you know, where do you see the CPA firm or the future going? What does it look   Yeah, you know, we started out as the virtual family office hub. We're still the virtual family office hub. What we do is the due diligence project. So we've had a vision, you know, more than 15 years ago where the CPA firm of future, the CPA firm of today is no longer just a CPA firm, right? They're not just an accounting firm looking backwards. What does a CPA firm mean now? They're a proactive looking firm. So they're really   providing advisory services. They're bringing ideas to the table. That is not what accountants traditionally do. So right away, the CPA firm of the future in our world is a virtual family office led not by a money manager or an attorney or a financial advisor. It's led by a tax advisor who really has a tremendous amount of experience with audits, with tax court, with income tax planning.   that's plugged into this community. really let's build Wall Street underneath an elite tax advisor and let's give them vetted best in class peer reviewed resources for estate planning, money management, all the different resources underneath them. And let's make sure all these resources are trained to be part of a team that's led by the captain, which is the head of their family office. But in this case, it's a virtual family office because in our opinion,   (Alex Sonkin) (25:30.732) Like we said, the best people in the world don't necessarily want to be W-2 static living next to the family office or living next to the CPA firm that they support. These resources could be anywhere and everywhere. And it's like Lego pieces. Let's build out a custom build, a virtual family office with your favorite advisors, with your favorite CPA, plug them into due diligence project, and then maybe replace some of the resources with best in class peer reviewed.   I'm going to keep my estate planning attorney. I'm going to keep my CPA, but then let's build out the rest of my virtual family office with resources, specialists, specialized attorneys that my two estate planning attorney and my CPA need to help me do what I need to do and get from point A to point B.   Yeah, yeah, I love that. Let's let's unwind that a little bit. What what exactly is a family office? We have a lot of listeners that are, you know, high net worth individuals, wealthy, probably a high paying job of some sort. And, we still don't know what a family office is. Like, what is a family office? We hear about it all the time. People talk about it. You know, what is it? Is it just, you know, the Trumps and the Bidens that have them or what?   Well, look, when we first started doing this, we had to educate everyone. What is a family office? And there's still people that don't know what a family office is, and that's okay. So traditionally, what a family office is, is when a family or a business owner sells their business, and now they have a big pile of money instead of running their business where they don't need CFOs and C-level executives and marketing people. Now they have a big pile of money. Maybe they're building a real estate portfolio, private equity, various investments.   They, instead of having to make 17 phone calls, hey, I'm gonna call my CPA, I'm gonna call my attorney, I'm gonna call my advisors, they make one phone call to the head of their family office and their family office is gonna house their entire financial team. So their CPAs, their attorneys, their advisors are all part of a family office and there's usually a CEO of that family office.   (Alex Sonkin) (27:36.814) So that structure traditionally can cost anywhere from $250,000 a year up to $2,000, $3,000, $4,000,000 a year if you're dealing with very high net worth billionaires. our idea was to rebuild that structure and make it a virtual family office instead of a single family office or a multi-family office with everyone working W2 in a static place, was let's create a virtual family office environment where we can have a world-class tax attorney support   multiple virtual family offices led by CPAs around the country. And based on what their clients want and need, they may not need a full $250,000 or a million dollar yearly cost. Maybe they can have a family office with $50,000 worth of yearly expenses and they just need, you know, two, three advisors, six meetings a year, get their hands around what you're doing.   And they don't need check writing. They don't need a lot of these other services that maybe a ultra high net worth family needs where they just want to make one phone call instead of 17 phone calls and say, take care of this for me. In the virtual family office model, it's the same one phone call, except now the team underneath that person that's getting the call are vetted best in class peer reviewed resources who might be all around the world who will all get together on a virtual meeting.   to support the client when the client has, hey, I have a liquidity event or I have a tax event or I want to update my plan. Hey, let's bring the team together and let's look at all the moving parts and let's rebuild your plan. But now we're going to take advice and ideas from the smartest people in the world. We're all working together as part of a team.   Got it. Yeah. the virtual family office, makes it seem like that it offers wealth management, the best wealth management, more, it makes it more accessible to more people, right? Like not just billionaires, but maybe lower than that, right? Like maybe we've got $10 million or something like that and we can still get the best of the best.   (Alex Sonkin) (29:42.068) Exactly. And so our idea was, you know, you have these people who are worth $50 million and they can't afford a family office, but they want to, you know, the $50 million, they want to live life too. They want to be able to go play tennis. They want to give time to their synagogue, their churches. They want to do something else besides actually running their own, you know, basically overseeing their $50 million portfolio, which is a full-time job. the problem is they're not qualified to be doing that work.   Yet can they identify investments that they like? Sure. Can they identify the best planning around those investments? They're not schooled in that. So they really should not be involved in their family office. should identify a tax-focused CPA, have them build out a virtual family office for them. And then now they have the benefit of making one phone call instead of 17, which saves them lot of time. And they can now trust the fact that they have best-in-class peer-reviewed resources to give them the very, very best ideas.   So now what happens? Their confidence level goes up. So their time and planning goes down, confidence level goes up, the quality of the solutions goes up, and they're all of a sudden out, they can create a lot more wealth by doing world-class planning because we're seeing a lot of wealth just go away to state and federal governments and unnecessary taxes simply because the team does not know and has not completed their due diligence on all the possibilities.   That's we want.   Yeah, that's incredible, Alex. You know, I want to have you back on the show to maybe get into some of the more of nitty gritty stuff, right? Like what are some of these tax strategies that we might not know about or we might not hear about every single day because we tend to hear about the same ones over and over. And you've probably seen some pretty exotic ones, some very specific ones that people have never even heard of. But, you know, we're running out of time today. But, man, I would love to have a whole episode just kind of based on that.   (Seth Bradley) (31:40.91) But before we jump into the freedom four, you have one last gold nugget for our listeners.   Yeah, you know, just work hard, write your goals down, read your goals and update your goals. You know, there's a magic formula of being able to just writing down your goals, looking at your goals and just updating your goals. Be grateful. I know you get a probably get a lot of people just with gratitude and hard work and all that stuff. writing down your goals is something that very few people do. And of the people that write their goals down, a very high percentage of those people actually achieve those goals. So   simple way of getting successful and I do it and I recommend that little idea to every one of my friends and family.   Yeah, absolutely. you know, I think people sometimes they get caught up in, you know, the the mental stuff, they don't want to jump into that. But goal setting is more of a tangible thing. And all those things you hear about, like whether that's a vision board or affirmations or visualizations or setting goals, like it's all kind of the same, right? It's just even if it's like,   I want to update my tax planning. I want to have a better tax planning team. know, write that down. And every day you look down at all your goals and make them balanced. You know, some of it is they'd give back to the community, have strong relationships with my family members or have no relationships with certain families. I don't know, you know, what the goals are. But balanced goals where you're constantly reviewing those goals and then you're updating those goals. And every day you do something to take a step.   (Alex Sonkin) (33:15.278) towards achieving those goals. Those are little things. It's not a huge deal, but when you do that over time, there's a compound effect to it that is incredible that people just can't appreciate. It's been said, we think we can do a lot more than we do in a year, but we don't realize how much we can do in a five or 10 year period. It's incredible.   much we can do in a five or ten year period if we're just consistent every day for that period of   Absolutely, you get some momentum going over time. All right, let's jump into the Freedom 4. What's the best thing you do to keep your mind and body healthy?   I do strength training six days a week and I actually prefer using a rubber band training. This X3 bar program that's out there. There's a bunch of different competitors now, but it's like a 20, 30 minute training.   Nice, nice. With all your success, what is one limiting belief that you've crushed along the way and how did you get past it?   (Alex Sonkin) (34:18.968) Great question. You know, I think everyone experiences fears, fear of failure in different areas. And I think you have to attack your fear of failure. Whatever you're scared of, whatever's on your radar that's popping up as a fear, you have to literally identify it and attack it and just prove to yourself that you're really not scared of it.   Love that. What's one actual step our listeners can do right now to start creating more freedom?   They can take action. Action is the key. The real problem is people just sit around, they get in front of themselves. They're too much thinking, too much analysis. What I've seen is people who have achieved incredible, let's just say business success, those people weren't smart enough to know.   that how hard that business was actually going to be to build. They were actually not, if they were smarter, they would have never done the business because they were like, the odds of me actually achieving this business and creating it are so small. I'm just better off not doing it. They weren't that smart. So they just went ahead and jumped into it. And so what I found is just taking massive, massive action. Even if it's a failure, that massive action creates a pattern because it's going to   Success is going to require massive action. And when you have a pattern and know this is going to take massive action and it's okay if it doesn't work out, I'm going to go for it anyway. I'm just going to assume it does work out. So being positive, massive action. If it fails, boom, you learn something and you go do something else and you just keep taking massive action.   (Seth Bradley) (36:10.402) Perfect. Last but not least, how's passive income or entrepreneurship made your life better?   You know, I've been very blessed. 20 years ago, I came up with an idea based on a diet that cured cancer for my aunt, my mother-in-law. And I suggested to my wife and my mother-in-law that they start selling my mother-in-law's cookies that were based on a diet that cured cancer for my mother-in-law. And so now today, we have a company called Go Macro, MacroMars, that my wife and my mother-in-law built based on an entrepreneurial idea that   you know, that I had over 20 years ago. And as soon as we had a little bit of success in the beginning, I knew this was bigger and better than we had even thought of. And I just continually supported my wife and really just in every way I could to watch this opportunity grow. So to me, that's been my my passive, even though, you know, I'm married to this business owner, you know, supporting her and watching this idea grow and flourish into a really   Successful health food company called comacro where we sell these macro bars. They're super delicious   Yeah, that's awesome. Yeah, it's passive for you, maybe not quite as passive for her. I have the same issue with the gyms. You know, they make really good money and it's passive for me, but my wife is running those things, so no.   (Alex Sonkin) (37:31.174) Exactly, well you know she's had to be there to support you so yeah so for her it's passive and it's a great story for her and it's a great successful story for you as well. know how hard it is to build.   Yeah, awesome Alex. The list has been incredible, man. We're gonna let you find out more about you.   DoDiligenceProject.com or info at DoDiligenceProject.com. You can introduce your CPA to us or you can reach out to us if you hate your CPA and want us to recommend a great CPA for you that's already plugged into our...   Easy enough, man, easy enough. All right, brother, thanks for coming on the show.   Seth, it's been my pleasure. Thanks so much for having me.   (Seth Bradley) (38:09.986) Absolutely.   (Seth Bradley) (38:13.944) Thanks for tuning in to Raise the Bar Radio. If you enjoyed today's episode, make sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who needs to hear it. Keep pushing, keep building, and keep raising the bar. Until next time, enjoy the journey.   Links from the Show and Guest Info and Links: Seth Bradley's Links: https://x.com/sethbradleyesq https://www.youtube.com/@sethbradleyesq www.facebook.com/sethbradleyesq https://www.threads.com/@sethbradleyesq https://www.instagram.com/sethbradleyesq/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethbradleyesq/ https://passiveincomeattorney.com/seth-bradley/ https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/sethbradleyesq https://medium.com/@sethbradleyesq https://www.tiktok.com/@sethbradleyesq?lang=en   Alex Sonkin's Links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexsonkin/ https://encoursa.com/presenters/alex-sonkin https://www.facebook.com/asonkin/

Dr. Ja-Naé Duane is a creator, behavioral scientist, award-winning innovator, and 4x entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience guiding organizations, institutions, governments, and communities toward a new renaissance and a better future for humanity. For the past two decades, Ja-Naé has dedicated herself to one mission: make life better for one billion people. As an expert on global systems, she focuses on helping corporations, governments, and universities understand and develop systems of the future using emerging technology such as VR/AR, AI, and blockchain by guiding them forward, helping them get out of their own way to create exponential innovation and future forecasting. She has had the pleasure of working with companies such as PWC, Saudi Aramco, Yum Brands, Samsonite, Natixis, AIG, and Deloitte. A top-rated speaker and co-author of the best-selling The Startup Equation, Ja-Naé excels at helping both startups and multinational firms identify new business models and pathways on a global scale.  Over the years, her work has caught the attention of The Associated Press, NPR, The Boston Globe, and BusinessWeek. Ja-Naé holds degrees from Brown University, I.E. Business School, Northeastern University, Carnegie University, Bentley University, and Boston University. Ja-Naé is a member of the Loomis Council at the Stimson Center, collaborator with the National Institute of Health, and holds appointments at Brown University and MIT's Center for Information Systems Research. Her next book, SuperShifts, will be released in April 2025.Steve Fisher is a visionary futurist, innovation leader, and design strategist with over 30 years of experience driving transformational change. Passionate about reimagining business models, he leverages cutting-edge advancements—especially Generative AI—to empower organizations across industries to navigate complexity and seize future opportunities.  As a leader in foresight and innovation, Steve has consistently spearheaded high-impact initiatives at renowned organizations. At McKinsey & Company, he co-founded the Futures Practice, integrating strategic foresight and speculative design to help businesses anticipate and adapt to an uncertain future. At FTI Consulting, he led the adoption of Generative AI for business model transformation, pioneering new AI-driven solutions that delivered measurable impact across industries. Beyond corporate leadership, Steve is the Managing Partner of Revolution Factory, a global innovation firm that fosters cutting-edge solutions through AI, strategic foresight, and design thinking. He also serves as Chief Futurist at the Human Frontier Institute (HFI), where he explores emerging trends, conducts research on future-oriented challenges, and mentors leaders in strategic foresight. A prolific thought leader and author, Steve co-authored the best-selling The Startup Equation and is releasing his next book, SuperShifts in April 2025 and Designing the Future the following year—which delve into the future of business, technology, and human adaptation. He shares his insights through keynotes, industry publications, and his podcasts—the Think Forward Show and Off World Podcast—which explore the intersection of innovation, AI, and humanity's expansion beyond Earth. Committed to democratizing futures thinking, Steve believes that understanding human history and patterns of change are essential to building resilient, future-ready organizations. His expertise in Generative AI, strategic foresight, and design-led innovation enables him to help organizations anticipate challenges and seize opportunities with confidence.

As sweeping US tax reform takes effect in 2025, corporate taxpayers face important changes. These include extensions of and modifications to key Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA) provisions as well as expansion of some Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) incentives while accelerating the phase-out of others. In this episode we provide an overview of the key corporate provisions and dive into the related accounting and financial reporting implications. In this episode, we discuss:03:24 – Extensions and modifications of TCJA domestic tax laws13:42 – Extensions and modifications of TCJA international tax laws24:03 – Changes to IRA energy credits29:30 – Other provisions (e.g., endowments, charitable deductions)33:19 – Global tax implications and Pillar Two39:25 – What's ahead for corporate tax policy and accounting for income taxes For more information, check out our publications, Accounting for 2025 US tax reform and President Trump signs H.R. 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”. You can also listen to our related podcast episode, Sustainability now: Facing IRA and clean energy credit uncertainty. Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop. About our guests Jennifer Spang is PwC's National Office income tax accounting leader, specializing in tax accounting under US GAAP and IFRS. She has over 25 years of experience helping companies in a variety of industries navigate complex tax accounting matters. Pat Brown is PwC's National Tax Office Co-Leader. Prior to joining PwC, he spent 16 years in the private sector, including as the director of tax policy for a Fortune 50 company. Pat has also served in the US Treasury's Office of Tax Policy as an attorney-advisor and as Associate International Tax Counsel. About our guest host Diana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group. Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.com.Did you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Leading With Strengths is a Gallup study uncovering the unique talents of the world's most influential leaders.Allison Boersma is the president and chief executive officer of Riddell and BRG Sports. She brings extensive leadership experience in finance, operations and strategy, with prior roles at Kraft Foods and PwC.Listen to the full series at https://www.gallup.com/leading-with-strengths

David is the founder of Strategy Shift. He's worked with more than 50 CEOs and hundreds of other C-suite executives to design bold strategies, supercharge their leadership, and transform their cultures in 20 countries. He's a contributor to Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Management Review, and Strategy+Business, and a guest lecturer at London Business School. He is a former senior partner at Strategy&, PwC.In today's episode of Smashing the Plateau, you will learn actionable strategies for navigating major career transitions and aligning your work with your values and aspirations.David and I discuss:What prompted David to leave his senior partner role and start something new [01:48]The role of personal needs and values in career decisions [04:13]How to adopt a strategic approach to career pivots [04:56]The importance of building a supportive, challenging network [06:24]Why making small decisions can energize bigger changes [07:21]The value of not rushing your transition [08:15]How to navigate career strategy in times of chaos and complexity [10:38]Advice for consultants facing indecision and radio silence from clients [14:21]What CEOs and leaders really need from consultants today [16:24]How to tap into and nurture a community of thinking partners [20:19]Where to find David's resources and get in touch [22:57]Learn more about David at:• Strategy Shift: https://strategyshift.co.uk/• Profile: https://strategyshift.co.uk/founder/• Newsletter: https://davidlancefield.com/newsletter/• Courses: https://strategyshift.co.uk/courses/• Writing: https://davidlancefield.com/writing/• Lancefield on the Line Podcast: https://davidlancefield.com/lancefield-on-the-line/• https://strategyshift.co.uk/media/Thank you to Our Sponsor:The Smashing the Plateau CommunitySubscribe now to receive expert strategy tips—unlock your next level of success with every episode!

Leadership isn't always about setting big picture strategy and chairing Town Hall meetings: it's also about taking leadership micro-steps and getting the basics right. In today's episode, we are talking about the fact that adaptability and emotional resilience will be some of the most vital skills leaders will need this decade.We are talking about:The core of adaptability: having clear and flexible expectationsSupporting yourself and your team emotionally through changeLearning how to be 'light on your feet' to pivot and adapt more readilyMaking it psychologically safe for you and your team to have 'human' experiences like doubt or fearAnd so much more...!Something Rebecca said today:" In her book The Gift of Change, Marianne Williamson says, “The speed of change today is faster than the human psyche seems able to handle” and talks to feelings of overwhelm as we reconcile our personal lives with everything else going on all around us such as non-stop technological advancements; a 24-hour news cycle (with ever more extreme stories); and the 24/7 demands too of social media. 21st century change is rapid. The question is: can humans keep up? Not just practically speaking, but emotionally too? And maybe, critically, does everyone want to?"  (Rebecca Allen, host - Her Ambitious Career Podcast)Links:Listen to: Leadership Fundamentals: Integrity & Self-Awareness (Part 1 of this 3-part series)Listen to: Leadership Fundamentals: Communication & Accountability (Part 2 of this 3-part series)Listen to: Ep 195 – The Top 5 Skills Employers Want Most This Decade Are Human-Centric Get Rebecca's free download: The 7 Habits of Female Execs Who Get PromotedBook a free 15-minute Career Strategy Call with RebeccaRate, Review, & Follow our Show on Apple Podcasts:Also, if you haven't done so already, follow the podcast. We air every week and I don't want you to miss out on a single broadcast. Follow now!About Rebecca:Rebecca Allen is a Career & Leadership Coach for corporate women, aspiring to senior levels of leadership. Over the last decade, Rebecca has helped women realise their potential at companies including Woolworths, ANZ, J.P. Morgan, PwC, Coca-Cola Amatil, Ministry of Defence, Frontier Sensing and AbbVie Medical Research through her Roadmap to Senior Leadership coaching programs. Connect with Rebecca

The Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report is your best resource for the Virginia Beach Fishing Report, Ocean View Fishing Report, Norfolk Fishing Report, Lynnhaven Inlet Fishing Report, and everywhere in between.For the anglers looking for an Eastern Shore Fishing Report, Hampton fishing report, Buckroe Beach Fishing Report, or York River fishing report, look no further. Every week we bring you a report for those anglers interested in a Cape Charles fishing report and a Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel fishing report and for every location in the Lower Chesapeake Bay. For our guys looking for the Virginia fishing report, we've got you covered.Starting out we catch up with Captain Robbie Bryan aboard Reel Release Sportfishing to learn about what's happening out at the wrecks and beyond, with seabass & triggerfish and even flounder.  He shares some great tips and tricks as well as insights on what key things to pay attention to while wreck fishing.  He also tells the story of an epic cobia catch, with 2 fish totaling over 116 pounds!  To book, visit his website: Reel Release Booking or give him a call 757-705-1366. Next, we catch up with "Jet Ski Brian" Lockwood, to hear about the advantages of fishing from a PWC, how to outfit it, fuel economy and more.  He shares his technique for target cobia on structure.www.greatdaysoutdoors.com/lcbfr to be added to our email list and we'll send you the new show each week! All Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report Email Subscribers receive a PROMO CODE for a FREE AFTCO Camo Sunglasses Cleaner Cloth with the purchase of any products!Sponsors:Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle Shoreline PlasticsSam Rust Seafood Great Days OutdoorsKillerDockHilton's Realtime-NavigatorAFTCOAirmedcare Salts Gone TOHATSU North America Survival At Sea Fish Bites Sea Tow

IMPACT OF AI IN THE BLUE CHIP GRADUATE CAREER   In the before times, the passport to comfortable middle class prosperity was go to a good University, get a 2.1 or above, and apply to a graduate scheme with a blue chip organisation. Most attractive were the global professional services firms - McKinsey, Accenture, PwC, KPMG, BCG and the rest. With the advent of AI replacing a great deal of the knowledge related tasks previously performed by graduate entry into these firms, is this path no longer as viable as it once was?     Lets deep dive:   - State of the blue chip graduate recruiting market - What is the volume of intake 2020-2025? - What type of work might we have expected from early entry employees in PS? - How much of this is 'exposed' to AI disintermediation? - Does AI have a different impact rather than direct replacing the task? - What do PS firms expect from early entry talent in 2025 and beyond? - How can early entry talent best position for a future in PS? - How will Management Consultancy itself change over time?   All this and more, with Yazad Dalal, Chief Growth Officer (Joveo), Marketa Simkova, Partner, Head of People, Performance, Culture - KPMG Middle East & Sophie Jablansky, Senior PM (Veris Insights)from within the Professional Services and Management Consultancy sector.   We are on Friday 12th Sep, 2pm BST - follow the channel here (recommended) and save your spot for this demo by clicking on the green button.     Ep329 is sponsored by our friends Joveo   As the global leader in AI-powered recruitment marketing and candidate engagement, we are transforming talent attraction and recruitment media buying for the world's largest and smartest employers, staffing businesses, RPOs, and recruitment advertising agencies.   Want to find out more?   Speak to one of our team today.

California's climate reporting is coming, but many questions remain. In this episode, we cover Assembly Bill (AB) 1305, Senate Bill (SB) 253, and SB 261—what's required now, what's still evolving, and how companies can prepare as the California Air Resources Board (CARB) works to finalize draft regulations.In this episode, we discuss:3:05 – Overview of AB 1305, SB 253, and SB 261, including scope and revenue thresholds6:46 – Litigation updates and why deadlines still apply despite challenges10:29 – Defining “doing business in California” and revenue thresholds under CARB proposals18:39 – CARB's role in enforcement, rulemaking, and timeline for draft regulationsFor more information, check out our In depth on California's climate laws and Chapter 22 of PwC's Sustainability reporting guide, Jurisdictional sustainability reporting – California.Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop for the latest thought leadership on sustainability standards.About our guestsLogan Redlin is a director in PwC's National Office who is focused on thought leadership strategy and content development related to accounting and financial reporting, sustainability reporting, and standard setting. Prior to this role, Logan spent 15 years in the audit practice, serving both public and private companies with a primary focus on asset management and real estate.Valerie Wieman is a PwC National Office partner with over 30 years of experience. She is one of the firm's technical experts on sustainability reporting and helps lead the creation, development, and publication of our brand-defining thought leadership, with a focus on domestic and international sustainability requirements.About our guest hostGuest host Diana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.com Did you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Today, I am pleased to welcome Craig Armstrong, Managing Partner of Veridian, a Miami-based tax, audit, accounting, and advisory firm. Craig has over 25 years of public accounting experience, including serving clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to local or middle market companies, as well as high net worth family offices and individuals. He began his career with the firm of Williams, Cox, Weidner, and Cox in Tallahassee, Florida, and held prior roles as Senior Manager of Corporate Accounting Special Projects with Ryder System, Inc. and South Florida Site Leader for audits of employee benefit plans at PwC in Miami. Craig co-founded CAPA, a certified public accounting firm in 2004 and merged with Hancock Askew in 2020 prior to forming Veridian in 2025. He serves on the audit and finance committee of the Board of Directors for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami and is a member of the University of Miami's School of Business Accounting Advisory Board. Craig and his firm, Veridian, are advisor members of FOX and we are thrilled to have their expertise available within our membership community. In recent years, technological advancements have transformed the role of the advisor serving UHNW families. Craig talks about how the role of the advisor has evolved alongside technology, and particularly how the role of the CPA has changed. With the rise of AI, we are beginning to witness the next-stage transformation of the family advisor role. Craig shares his thoughts on what is likely to happen to the role of the fiduciary advisor in the era of AI – how will CPAs, estate planners, and wealth planners will coexist with the AI tools. One practical consideration advisors and families need to navigate is the increasingly divergent preferences between older-gen and rising-gen clients. Craig offers his tips on how professionals and clients can best manage the “generational tug of war” caused by their different values and preferences. Finally, Craig provides his and suggestions for UHNW clients on how best to interact with their CPA – especially given all the self-serve tools and AI solutions that are increasingly available in all professional services fields. Please enjoy this highly informative conversation with a leading expert and experienced UHNW advisor serving enterprise families.

In this episode, host Keith Newman welcomes Carine Schneider, founding partner at Compass Strategic Advisors and longtime advocate for broader access to private markets.Carine shares her journey from PwC to leading cap table companies and advising global firms, and why she believes the time is right to rethink private market access. She discusses the updates to her book The Democratization of Private Markets, highlighting:- Why she felt compelled to rewrite it just a few years after the first edition.- How the UK's new PISCES framework could inspire U.S. market reform.- Recent U.S. policy changes, including executive orders allowing 401Ks to invest in private assets.- The ongoing debate: Should private markets remain restricted to professionals, or should everyday investors have access?Along the way, Carine also opens up about her personal milestones, including an upcoming family trip to Hawaii, reminding us that behind market shifts are human stories.Whether you're an investor, policymaker, or simply curious about the future of private capital, this conversation offers a timely look at where the industry is heading.

In this episode, we focus on transfers of financial assets. The discussion breaks down the fundamentals of ASC 860, clarifies when a transfer qualifies as a sale versus a secured borrowing, and outlines the key criteria for derecognition.In this episode, we discuss:0:59 – Overview of ASC 860 and the basics of financial asset transfers3:35 – Transactions subject to ASC 8606:56 – Transfer of an entire versus a portion of a financial asset and application of the participating interest guidance11:12 – Control criteria to achieve sale accounting:11:53 – Legal isolation16:38 – Right to pledge or exchange19:42 – Effective control21:50 – Examples of "failed sale" transactionsFor more information, check out our Transfers and servicing of financial assets guide.Be sure to follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app and subscribe to our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop.About our guestChip Currie is a partner in PwC's National Office with 30 years of experience assisting companies in resolving complex business and accounting issues. He concentrates on the accounting for financial instruments under both current and emerging standards and works with many of the firm's largest financial services clients and a number of non-financial services clients on treasury-related matters. About our guest host Guest host Diana Stoltzfus is a partner in the National Office who helps to shape PwC's perspectives on regulatory matters, responses to rulemakings and policy development, and implementation related to significant new rules and regulations. Prior to rejoining PwC, Diana was the Deputy Chief Accountant in the Office of the Chief Accountant (OCA) at the SEC where she led the activities of the OCA's Professional Practices Group. Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

In today's episode, I am thrilled to introduce you to Michelle "MACE" Curran - an absolute force of nature who embodies everything this podcast stands for. Michelle “MACE” Curran is a former United States Air Force fighter pilot with nearly 2,000 hours of F-16 flying time. She flew combat missions in Afghanistan and honed her skills across the globe. Then, she served as the Lead Solo Pilot for the Thunderbirds, the Air Force's elite demonstration team - becoming the fourth woman in history to do so! Michelle is also the author of an incredible new book, The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear Into Your Superpower. She has helped notable clients like Microsoft, Boeing, John Deere, SpaceX, Purina, PwC, and more make bold choices and push past obstacles. Exclusive for I Dare You Podcast listeners, be part of The Dare Club and get your FREE Thrive visual synopsis, Thrive worksheet, and Well-Being Assessment PDFs! Simply go to www.idareyoupod.com Connect with Michelle “MACE” Curran: Instagram: @mace_curran www. macecurran.com

Dive into the Decoding IFRS 18 podcast series with Episode 1 for an introduction to the new IFRS Accounting Standard set to redefine financial performance reporting. Anu Pandya is joined by Katja van der Kuij and Tanya van Eyk who lead PwC's IFRS 18 accounting working group. Find out more at PwC's IFRS Talks homepage. 

In this podcast, PwC's David Ledure, Tanja Keser and Alex Xiang discuss the complex interplay between financial transactions and operational transfer pricing, including how activities above and below the EBIT line interact.Support the show

I invited Laura Desmond, CEO of Smartly, to make sense of what feels like the biggest shake-up in marketing since the mobile era. She has led through every cycle I can remember, from the early internet to the rise of social, and she sees AI changing the rules faster than any previous wave. Across our conversation we unpack how AI is rewriting creative work, buying, and measurement, while forcing brands to rebuild trust with clear rules on data, models, and creator rights. Here's the thing. Attention is shorter, and the thumb moves fast. Most people give an ad about two seconds, and video is taking over the feed. Laura expects video to account for three quarters of digital ads by 2026, which tracks with what I am seeing across every platform. Smartly is betting on that shift with tools that turn Shorts or TikToks into personalized CTV spots, and bring CTV signal back into social. The goal is simple to say and hard to pull off. Show every person something that feels made for them, then learn from the response and improve the next piece of creative in near real time. We also talk about why the ground is moving under search. A growing number of people, especially younger users, skip the front page of Google and ask an AI assistant instead. That changes how discovery works, how queries appear, and where ad products live. Laura thinks we are heading toward campaigns that cut across search, social, retail media, and CTV as one flowing video-first effort, with creative and media stitched together by software rather than teams tossing files over the wall. Results matter, and Laura shared two proof points I kept coming back to. Smartly's platform has been validated by PwC for a 13 percent ROI lift across clients. The same study confirmed time savings that add up to 42 minutes a day for hands-on users. That reclaimed time funds the work that actually moves the needle, like faster A/B tests, sharper creative decisions, and better budget moves across channels. We also dig into conversational ads. In a recent test with Boots, Smartly's format delivered roughly four times the return on investment versus business as usual, which speaks to how fast query-style interactions are shaping expectations. Trust sits in the middle of all this. Laura is clear that responsible AI is table stakes. Brands need controls to tune or override generated assets, clarity on data sources and model choice, and a stance on creator rights before any content goes live. Her view of AI is creative first. Automate the tedious parts. Keep people in charge of taste, tone, and brand. Use the feedback loop to learn faster, not to replace the team. We close on where this all leads. Expect brand experiences that blur physical and digital without losing the human spark. Stadiums full, stores buzzing, and at the same time richer virtual touchpoints, snackable video, and one-to-one conversations that feel helpful rather than creepy. If this is your world, Laura is hosting Smartly's ADVANCE on September 17 in Brooklyn, and it looks set to be a real working session for marketers who want results, not theater. You can find details here: https://bit.ly/4fRgWEE. Tune in if you want a candid, practical map for where creative, media, and AI are heading next, and how to measure what matters while keeping your brand worthy of trust. ********* Visit the Sponsor of Tech Talks Network: Land your first job  in tech in 6 months as a Software QA Engineering Bootcamp with Careerist https://crst.co/OGCLA

Megan Dalla-Camina held executive roles with IBM, PwC and GE before founding Women Rising, a global enterprise aimed at supporting women in leadership roles.

Doug McHoney (PwC's International Tax Services Global Leader) is joined by Wade Sutton, a principal who leads the international tax team in PwC's Washington National Tax Services practice. Doug and Wade discuss OB-3's outbound impacts and the ripple effects across the system: CAMT interactions and credit ordering; Section 174 R&E expensing elections; Section 163(j) excluding CFC items and the financing/on-lending response; FDII's shift to FDDEI, a permanent 14% rate, and 2026 expense-apportionment relief; GILTI's rebrand to Net CFC tested income with a 14% effective rate and ‘directly allocable' expense questions; inventory-sourcing relief; repeal of the Section 898 one-month deferral; permanent CFC look-through; the Section 958(b)(4) fix; a new Section 951(a)(2)(B) framework; selected technical corrections; and why granular modeling matters now more than ever.  

In this episode, we break down the amendments to the EU Taxonomy Regulation adopted by the European Commission in July 2025. Learn about the changes, what they mean for both financial and non-financial companies, and what may still be on the horizon. Plus, we'll share practical steps companies can take as they prepare for implementation.In this episode, we discuss:1:10 – Overview of the EU Taxonomy Regulation and potential changes to come7:46 – Changes on the horizon for non-financial services companies17:14 – Major reliefs for financial services companies25:10 – Next steps for the EU Taxonomy Regulation and what companies can do nowLooking for more on the EU Taxonomy regulation and other Omnibus proposals?European Commission adopts revisions related to Taxonomy RegulationA deep dive into the draft Amended ESRSEFRAG's next step toward revised ESRSNew reliefs for ESRS ‘wave 1' reportersSustainability now: EU Omnibus in motion – August 2025 updateAbout our guestValerie Wieman is a PwC National Office partner with over 30 years of experience. She is one of the firm's technical experts on sustainability reporting and helps lead the creation, development, and publication of our brand-defining thought leadership, with a focus on domestic and international sustainability requirements.About our hostHeather Horn is the PwC National Office Sustainability and Thought Leader, responsible for developing our communications strategy and conveying firm positions on accounting, financial reporting, and sustainability matters. In addition, she is part of PwC's global sustainability leadership team, developing interpretive guidance and consulting with companies as they transition from voluntary to mandatory sustainability reporting. She is also the engaging host of PwC's accounting and reporting weekly podcast and quarterly webcast series.Transcripts available upon request for individuals who may need a disability-related accommodation. Please send requests to us_podcast@pwc.comDid you enjoy this episode? Text us your thoughts and be sure to include the episode name.

Can AI agents actually reduce your workload—or just add hype? Blake demos how he rebuilt bill-entry “Hubdoc-style” in about an hour with Zapier Agents, then maps out why most AI pilots fail without documented workflows and human approvals. Plus: PwC's plan to hire one-third fewer grads, juniors supervising AI, HMRC scanning social posts for tax gaps, and fresh salary and pricing benchmarks. Learn where AI truly fits—and how to price with confidence.SponsorsRelay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/relayTeamUp - http://accountingpodcast.promo/teamup Human at Scale - http://accountingpodcast.promo/humanDigits - http://accountingpodcast.promo/digitsChapters(05:36) - AI Agents: Hype vs. Reality (07:49) - AI's Impact on Corporate America (10:28) - Challenges in AI Integration (19:11) - PWC and AI: Training the Next Generation (21:43) - Building AI Agents with Zapier (41:00) - Human at Scale: Transforming Accounting Firms (42:34) - Live Stream Chat and AI Future (45:14) - Outsourcing vs. AI in Business (46:37) - AI in Accounting: Supervision and Customization (48:33) - Intuit's Q4 Earnings and QuickBooks Live (51:00) - AI's Impact on Accounting Jobs and Tools (59:48) - UK's AI Tax Fraud Detection (01:03:27) - Accounting Salary Survey Results (01:13:40) - Client Relationships and Free Speech Issues (01:18:18) - Conclusion and CPE Information  Show NotesThe GenAI Divide: State of AI in Business 2025 (MIT NANDA Report)https://fortune.com/2025/08/18/mit-report-95-percent-generative-ai-pilots-at-companies-failing-cfo/Getting a job at PwC out of college will be a lot tougher. It plans to recruit a third fewer grads by 2028 https://www.aol.com/getting-job-pwc-college-lot-120316405.htmlHMRC uses AI to spot tax fraud on social media https://www.accountancyage.com/2025/08/12/hmrc-uses-ai-to-spot-tax-fraud-on-social-media/The 2025 Accounting Today Salary Survey: Sweetening the deal https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/the-2025-accounting-today-salary-survey-sweetening-the-deal2025 U.S. Accounting and Tax Pricing Benchmark (Ignition) https://www.ignitionapp.com/us/2025-accounting-tax-pricing-benchmarkTaxDome Releases First-of-Its-Kind 2025 Niche Business Accounting Report https://www.morningstar.com/news/pr-newswire/20250819ph53815/taxdome-releases-first-of-its-kind-2025-niche-business-accounting-report2025 Niche Business Accounting Report (TaxDome) https://taxdome.com/niche-report-2025Need CPE?Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.comGet in TouchThanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and write a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Call us and leave a voicemail; maybe we'll play it on the show. DIAL (202) 695-1040.SponsorshipsAre you interested in sponsoring The Accounting Podcast? For details, read the prospectus.Need Accounting Conference Info? Check out our new website - accountingconferences.comLimited edition shirts, stickers, and other necessitiesTeePublic Store: http://cloudacctpod.link/merchSubscribeApple Podcasts: http://cloudacctpod.link/ApplePodcastsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAccountingPodcastSpotify: http://cloudacctpod.link/SpotifyPodchaser: http://cloudacctpod.link/podchaserStitcher: http://cloudacctpod.link/StitcherOvercast: http://cloudacctpod.link/OvercastClassifiedsWant to get the word out about your newsletter, webinar, party, Facebook group, podcast, e-book, job posting, or that fancy Excel macro you just created? Let the listeners of The Accounting Podcast know by running a classified ad. Go here to create your classified ad: https://cloudacctpod.link/RunClassifiedAdTranscriptsThe full transcript for this episode is available by clicking on the Transcript tab at the top of this page