The latest to go is in the Netherlands, which has signed a memorandum of understanding with Deloitte & Touche. According to a spokesperson, the deal is not yet finalized as, despite the Andersen partners all agreeing to the tie-up, Deloitte's partners are not due to conclude their discussions until April 26.
Under the terms of the agreement all Andersen staff will join Deloitte & Touche from June 1 this year and will continue to practice under the Deloitte banner. The spokesperson added that according to the agreement there should not be redundancies at either firm.
Deloitte has had a successful week for Andersen negotiations, announcing agreements with the firm in Belgium and Canada, and it is expecting to make another European announcement early this week.
Meanwhile, Ernst & Young has been even busier this week, successfully concluding talks with Andersen in France, Switzerland, Argentina, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The French deal will create one of the biggest law firms in France, uniting Andersen Legal with HSD E&Y Juridique et Fiscal.
Announcing the end of its discussions with Andersen in France, Mike Rake, the chairman of KPMG in Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: "We consider that our offer was both good and fair for Andersen people and clients given the difficult circumstances.
"We have only been willing to offer agreements which we are sure would protect our firm, our people and our clients from the potential liabilities of Andersen Worldwide, and maintain the reputation of KPMG with its clients and in the business community generally," he said.
In the UK, Andersen chose budget day on April 17 to announce that it is to make up to 1,500 redundancies because of the drop in business after the Enron scandal. The cuts will affect the whole of the UK business and will possibly help the union with Deloitte & Touche.
John Ormerod, the UK managing partner of Andersen, said the firm deeply regretted the decision, adding: "The combination of difficult economic conditions and the effects of the Enron situation means the UK firm is not achieving the levels of business activity on which our headcount is based."
Bill Dodwell, a tax partner with the London office of Andersen, commented: "Fifteen-hundred people is a devastating loss. The Deloitte merger will probably take place in three months time and while it isn't what any of us joined to do, I'm looking forward to it. This is an opportunity for us to strengthen their tax practice which lagged behind a bit."
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