On the move: Ascend adds chief AI officer

Traphagen CPAs raises over $1K for American Cancer Society; KPMG appoints four partners to deal advisory & strategy practice; and more news from across the profession. 

ARIZONA

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Brian Foltyn
Eric Draper
Brian Foltyn, principal and practice group leader in the valuation & related financial services group at REDW, Phoenix, was appointed to the Arizona State Board of Accountancy to serve a five-year term on the board. 

CONNECTICUT

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FASB offices
Patrick Dorsman/Financial Accounting Foundation
The Financial Accounting Standards Board, Norwalk, announced the appointment of two new members to its Investor Advisory Committee: Alex Barros, head of equity team, executive vice president and portfolio manager, Nippon Life Global Investors Americas; and Clinton Chang, vice president, Morgan Stanley.

ILLINOIS

RSM US LLP
Photo courtesy of RSM US LLP
RSM US, Chicago, launched RSM Catamaran, a suite of integrated, outsourced solutions for middle market firms.

NEW JERSEY

Traphagen CPAs & Wealth Advisors, Oradell, exceeded its goal of raising $1,000 for the American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer campaign by encouraging staff members to wear denim on a casual Friday in exchange for a $5 donation to the American Cancer Society. 

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board announced it will hold the fourth of its in-person 2024 forums on auditing in the small business environment and on auditing broker-dealers on Nov. 20, hosted by board member Anthony Thompson at the Hyatt Regency Jersey City in Jersey City.

NEW YORK

KPMG logo on wall
The offices of KPMG in Chicago
Tannen Maury/Bloomberg
KPMG hired four new partners to its deal advisory & strategy practice: Paul Pan, partner and private equity strategy leader based in New York City; Edward Butterfield, partner in private equity strategy with a focus on the industrial manufacturing industry, in Chicago; Nish Shah, partner in consumer and retail supporting private equity and corporate clients across transactions and transformation; and Brett Shisler, partner and transact-to-transform leader in private equity strategy, in New York City.

Alexis Adams, a tax principal at Grant Thornton, New York, was named a Notable Black Leader by Crain's New York Business. 

EY released its 2024 EY Global Corporate Reporting Survey, the ninth edition of a report surveying 2,000 finance leaders and 815 institutional investors around the world on the state of corporate reporting. In other firm news, EY published its second annual Nature Risk Barometer.

The Public Interest Committee and the International Federation of Accountants has begun the global search for the next International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board chair, led by the independent search committee.

BDO USA released its 2024 Board Survey, polling nearly 250 public company directors on their top strategic priorities for the year ahead.

UTAH

Abdo announced the addition of a new office in Salt Lake City, Utah.

VIRGINIA

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Prasad Sristi
Prasad Sristi was hired as chief AI officer and William Kelly as general counsel at Ascend, Arlington. Sristi was previously chief product and technology officer at VC-backed bookkeeping company Bench Accounting. Kelly was the former general counsel at Mazars USA and a member of the accountants' practice and commercial litigation practice at national law firm Wilson Elser.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

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PCAOB chair Erica Williams at the AICPA & CIMA Conference on Current SEC and PCAOB Developments
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission swore in Erica Williams for her second term as chair of the Public Accounting Oversight Board. (Read the full story.) In other news, the PCAOB posted 13 new inspection reports and five expanded reports.

The Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board extended its deadline for applications to serve as nonfederal members on the board, with a new deadline of Nov. 30, 2024.
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