Vorstand der WPK
Ziele des Vorstandes der WPK für die Amtszeit 2026 bis 2030
Wirtschaftsprüfung ist eine Vertrauensdienstleistung von zentraler Bedeutung für Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Dieses Vertrauen gilt es zu…
APAS:
The Auditor Oversight Authority (APAS) has published an analysis of the audit market in Germany. This analysis covers the reporting period from 2021 to 2025 and examines, in particular, trends in the number of public-interest entities and audit firms, the distribution of audit engagements, as well as trends in revenue from audit and non-audit services and changes in auditors.
The analysis includes auditors directly supervised by APAS who perform audits of public-interest entities as defined in Section 316a, Sentence 2 of the German Commercial Code (HGB). The analysis distinguishes between the sectors of credit institutions (KI), insurance companies (VU), and non-financial companies (Non-FS).
Key Findings
- Trends in the audit market: The number of public-interest entities declined from 1,014 to 922 during the period under review. The number of audit firms active in the market has stabilized in recent years and stood at 53 in 2025.
- Distribution of Audit Engagements: The number of engagements audited by the “Big Four” has declined steadily over the period under review. While the “Next Six” also recorded a decline in engagement numbers over the past two years, the number of engagements at other audit firms (“Others”) increased.
- Trends in Audit Revenue: Despite declining engagement numbers, revenue from audits rose by approximately 40% over the period under review, reaching 832 million euros in 2025. The “Big Four’s” share of this revenue fell from 92% to 86%, while the “Next Six” increased their share from 6% to 12%.
- Non-audit services: Revenue from non-audit services rose by about one-third in 2025 compared with the previous year, reaching 289 million euros. About 95% of this increase was attributable to the “Big Four.”
Further details can be found in the market analysis.
