Accounting Stats

Accounting Industry Statistics in the UK

Accounting in the UK has been living through one of its most hectic turns in the wake of Brexit and transitioning to Making Tax Digital regulations. Contrary to the clients, who largely remained dubious about the digital transition, most of the UK accountants think it had a positive effect in reducing errors and time management.

Firms are also receiving increasing demands on diversifying their services to include higher-value activities a business advisor would provide—with many recognising technology adoption would free up space needed for strategic advisory work.

Only a small amount of firms have suffered declining client bases—though unfortunately, economic turmoil hit sole practitioners and small businesses worse. But the demand is possibly on the rise, as accounting stats point to a correlation between consistent management and increased outsourcing activities.

• The month-on-month accounting growth rate climbed 14.9% in 2021, outperforming the overall services sector which saw 9.2% growth. (Accountancy Today)
• The revenue of accounting, auditing, and bookkeeping activities is expected to reach about £29 billion. (Statista)
• The number of audit firms registered with the Recognised Supervisory Bodies has been declining for three years, to 5,007 at the end of 2020. (FRC)
• Accountants and bookkeepers spend an average of 55 hours getting their clients compliant. (Quickbooks)
• 75% of accounting firms are confident or very confident in providing industry-specific advice for their clients. (Sage)
• The UK accounting industry turnover increased to £3.1 billion in 2021, according to national accounting statistics. (Accountancy Today)
• 49% of small businesses that have been under the same management for five years or more have an in-house accounting team. 73% of those that have been under the same management for less than a year have in-house accountants. (PR Newswire)
• 79% of accountants agree that government, industry, and international regulations are forcing changes to their practices. (Sage)
• Very large accounting firms (50+ employees) added 66 new monthly clients on average, compared to nine small firms (up to nine employees) added. (Xero)
• 62% of accountants said their clients are resistant to follow the regulations Making Tax Digital brought about. (Quickbooks)
• 51% of professionals believe demand for accountants in the future will include financial business advisory skills. (Sage)
• 19% of firms are actively recruiting in the area of business management, accounting job statistics report. (Sage)
• Job growth for accountants was positive in 2021, with only 4% of accounting practices reporting a declining client base. (Xero)
• Non-Big Four firms experienced a 13% rise in their total fee income, while the Big Four reported a growth of 2.7% in 2020. (FRC)
• Most of the practices’ (39%) client base is growing at the same rate as pre-pandemic, with only 13% reporting growth rate faster than pre-pandemic. (Xero)

Accounting Industry Statistics Around the World

The accounting industry is one of those verticals which haven’t received a significant blow from the overall disruption the pandemic caused in the world economy. Experiencing unprecedented operational challenges, firms were pushed to embrace and invest in digital projects — which in turn helped their recovery. The digital trend also found its place in governmental regulations around the world, paving the way to new possibilities for specialisation.

• Accounting stats reveal that North America remains the biggest region in the market with a 43% share, followed by Western Europe at 35%. (Yahoo Finance)
  The Ministry of Corporate Affairs in India made it mandatory for companies to use accounting software with audit trails and log facilities as of 2021. (Accelon)
• The revenue from accounting services in the US amounted to £85,7 billion in 2020, down from £87,6 billion. It is estimated to have reached £87,6 billion in 2021. (Statista)
• Asia-Pacific is expected to have the highest CAGR at 7% between 2020 and 2027 in the personal finance software market. (Allied Market Research)
• The highest-paid accountants in the world are in the UK with an average annual salary of £169,000, followed by Switzerland at £119,000, and Luxembourg at £92,000. (Naibuzz)
• The combined global revenue of the Big Four reached around £115 billion in 2020. (Statista)
• Only almost one-third of accounting firms around the world describe the transition to remote working due to the pandemic as seamless. (SmartVault)
• Accounting statistics show that 62% of professionals believe more clients and firms will be open to keep working remotely post-pandemic. (Smart Vault)
• South Africa and Seychelles got a perfect score from World Bank’s Supreme Audit Institutions Independence Index encompassing 118 countries. (World Bank Group)
• El Salvador passed the legislation rendering Bitcoin legal tender, opening new areas of specialisation for accountants. (PwC)
• 48% of firms in Germany are confident they will be conducting their operations paperless in two years. (KPMG)
• The global accounting industry trends indicate a growth of over £970 billion in 2022 at a CAGR of 12.7%. (The Business Research Company)
• The best industry for accountants in the US in terms of payment is Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing. (Investopedia)

Accounting Employment Statistics From Across the UK

The demand for accounting talent in the UK has increased significantly in the wake of Brexit and the pandemic—as of 2022, the talent pool is shrinking and competition is quite fierce. Aligning with the trends in the accounting industry which includes widening service catalogues, firms are seeking to recruit talent from different backgrounds, specifically those with tech skills to support digital transformation projects. Needless to say, cloud accounting jobs are in high demand, as evidenced by accounting jobs statistics.

While salaries remain stable for current employees, newcomers can expect a competitive salary, with incentives as such in place it is expected that the accounting employment rate will rise rapidly. Employees are seeking to harness new technology and request hybrid working schedules that’ll improve their work/life balance.

• There are over 160,000 students across the UK and the Republic of Ireland, the number decreased by 2.1% between 2019 and 2020, accounting graduates statistics show. (FRC)
• One-third of accounting firms report that they are looking to increase the number of full-time staff in the year ahead. (Xero)
• Accountant job satisfaction mostly depends on competitive salaries and benefits, with 40% citing career progression as the biggest motivation to move jobs. (Robert Walters)
• 82% of accounting firms say they are willing to recruit from a non-accounting background, for positions within project management and client services. (Sage)
• Women in accounting statistics indicate that less than 20% of partners in the industry are women. (FRC)
• Membership in accounting bodies in the UK and the Republic of Ireland had a compound growth rate of 2.1% between 2016 and 2020. (FRC)
• Candidates mostly request two days per week as a hybrid working model. (Robert Half)
• Financial services is the top hiring industry for accountants in London, IT in North and Southeast regions, and retail in Midlands. (Robert Walters)
• Accounting stress level is on the rise with 39% reporting escalating feelings of stress and burnout. (Accountancy Daily)
• 40% of accountants don’t think their employers’ benefits package suits their needs. (Robert Walters)
• Accounting salary statistics estimate a jump of 20% for new talent across the industry. (Robert Half)
• 42% of accountancy firms said they are actively seeking to diversify their workforce. (Sage)
• 37% of practices have a written policy on diversity and inclusion. (Sage)
• The largest region in the accounting market was North America, followed by Western Europe. (The Business Research Company)
• Accounting services provide over 405,000 jobs across the UK. (Global City)

Industry Ethics and Accounting Fraud Statistics

Accounting fraud makes up a significant portion of occupational fraud and is among the most disruptive forms of corporate misconduct. Cases of such typically occur as a result of pressure to achieve certain profit levels or a combination of unethical cultural factors which also allow inappropriate behaviour to slip by.

Though digitalisation of processes helped firms improve their network of accountability and combat data tampering, forensic accounting statistics reveal that accounting fraud is still a very real problem across the nation and globally. Besides financial losses, figures also underscore the disastrous impact of unethical professional behaviour on employees’ mental health.

• 14% of occupational fraud comes from accounting departments. (ACFE)
• Check and payment tampering is four times likely to happen in small businesses. (ACFE)
• Fraud in billing operations is the most common type of scheme across accounting departments. (ACFE)
• 37% of US citizens working in accounting and finance reported feeling they are underpaid. (Robert Half Salary Guide)
• Accounting fraud is the second most disruptive type of fraud, accounting statistics show. (PwC)
• Accounting fraud is the top 3rd type of fraud across the country at 26%, surpassing bribery and corruption. (PwC)
• 27% working in the industry indicated that they had been put under pressure to act in a professionally unethical way. (CCAB)
• Most of the ethics training (29%) comes in the form of e-learning. (CCAB)
• 29% of professionals who were pressured to act in an unethical way developed stress, anxiety, or depression. (CCAB)
• 26% of respondents of PwC’s last report experienced accounting fraud. (PwC)
• 56% of professionally unethical requests come from managers/colleagues, and 10% from the board. (CCAB)

Statistics on Accounting and Digitalisation

Covid-19 proved a catalyst for the ongoing digitalisation process across the industry. Cloud-accounting and fast adoption of an array of financial software deliver significant benefits like safe transmission of accounting data, more accurate projections, and automating mechanical tasks which free up space for further strategic consulting—which result in increased revenues and client satisfaction. Instant cloud access also paves the way for business expansion by unlocking new client territories and talent.

Cost remains the biggest obstacle in implementing new technologies, yet facts about accounting reveal a fast adoption rate for fintech solutions. Within the UK context, the Making Tax Digital initiative has partly rendered technology adoption hardly optional.

• Quickbooks has the biggest market share among accounting solutions at 54.8%. (Datanyze)
• 82% of accountants agree that clients now expect services such as advising on relevant finance and accounting technology. (Sage)
• Accounting career statistics confirm that the top strategical priority for CFOs in 2020 is to expand digital transformation projects. (Robert Half)
• Just 4% of accountants think technology costs them more than it saves. (Sage)
• 43% of charities reported interest in increasing their technology spending, with the changing tax regulations and lockdowns, the use of tools like charity accounting solutions or fundraising platforms is on the rise. (Kreston)
• 70% of accountants cite decreased manual data processing as their most important or second most important positive outcome of Making Tax Digital preparation. (Sage)
• Quickbooks is the most popular tool among SME owners at 43%, followed by Sage at 16% small business accounting statistics reveal. (Clutch)
• Accenture estimates that 60 to 80% of accounting tasks can be automated. Today, 34% of all financial tasks are automated. (Accenture)
• Only 11% of accountancy practitioners say their entire client base use accounting software. (Xero)
• 95% of clients would consider changing their accountant to one that uses an online portal, and 78% to ones that use the latest technology. (Business Wire)
• Businesses can shorten close process times by 36% by switching from spreadsheets to cloud financial management, accounting facts show. (Global Newswire)
• 73% of professionals are confident or very confident in providing technology implementation and recommendations on financial software or automation. (Sage)
• 22% of firms are investing in 5G, the highest rate among emerging technologies listed. (Sage)
• 70% of clients in manufacturing and 63% of the energy/oil/gas industry prioritize technology use in outsourcing accounting. (Business Wire)
• 63% of accounting firms that had a cloud-based management system in place felt they handled Covid-19 disruption well. (SmartVault)
  According to accounting stats, at 28%, the cost is the biggest reason not to implement new technologies. (Sage)

Sources: Accountancy Today, Statista, FRC, Quickbooks, Sage, PR Newswire, Xero, Yahoo Finance, Accelon, Statista, Allied Market Research, Naibuzz, Statista, Smart Vault, World Bank Group, PwC, KPMG, Business Research Company, Investopia, Robert Walters, Robert Half, Accountancy Daily, Global City, ACFE, Robert Half, PwC, CCAB, Datanyze, Kreston, Clutch, Accenture, Business Wire, Global Newswire