Auditors play a crucial role in financial regulation. Most people have heard the term "audit" or "auditors," but many don't actually know what auditors do and why their role is so important in the economy of today.
What Are Auditors?
Auditing is a type of accountancy function, so auditors are actually a type of accountant. There are two types of auditors: external auditors and internal auditors. External auditors are hired on behalf of the shareholders of a company to assess whether the company's accounts represent a "true and fair view" of the company's actual position in reality. Usually when the term "auditors" is used in newspapers and other media, it refers to external auditors.
Accountancy firms which provide professional services are usually hired to act as external auditors. Examples of accountancy firms which provide these services are The Big Four: PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst and Young, KPMG, and Deloitte. These are the four largest accountancy firms and they have a large share of the audit industry.