Become more informed in minutes...

New surveys from KPMG and Progress ShareFile show that artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming deeply embedded across finance and accounting functions, although the benefits are being realized unevenly across organizations and workflows. KPMG’s survey of more than 1,000 senior finance leaders found AI is delivering the strongest gains in financial planning and analysis, particularly in decision-making, forecasting, and responsiveness. Around 71% of respondents reported faster decision-making, 70% cited improved decision quality, and 64% said forecast accuracy had improved. More than three-quarters of organizations are now using AI in FP&A, while 71% said AI was meeting or exceeding return-on-investment expectations. However, the results suggest that only a smaller group of companies are seeing exceptional returns, with fewer than one-quarter saying AI has exceeded expectations. Separate research from Progress ShareFile, based on a survey of 311 U.S. accountants, found that accounting teams continue to struggle with operational inefficiencies despite widespread AI adoption. More than half of respondents said they can perform their jobs effectively, but not efficiently, while 75% said workflows involve too many steps. Other common complaints included limited automation for routine tasks, fragmented systems, and the need to constantly switch between tools.

 

CFO

Why Modern CFOs Fear the Qualified Audit Opinion

Audit success or failure often rests on the integrity of your most complex technical accounting. This can make things ASC 842 compliance and properly accounting for accrued expenses a source of audit risk. Manual spreadsheets and fragmented contract data often lead to unforeseen reporting errors, increasing that risk. FinQuery’s intelligent subledger platform was designed to move finance teams from a reactive posture to a proactive one.

Our CPA-approved accounting automation uses data extracted directly from the primary source—contracts, invoices, and SOWs—bridging the gap between raw agreements and your ERP. This ensures your reporting is always validated by the original document, for strong controls and a 100% traceable audit trail.

Check out our Audit Success Center to access CPA-tested methodologies for calculations and classifications, and to download proven templates to provide the transparency auditors require.  

Ace Your Audit

 

The Senate has confirmed Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Federal Reserve, replacing Jerome Powell at a time of heightened political pressure on the central bank and growing uncertainty over the U.S. economic outlook. Warsh, a former Fed governor and Wall Street executive nominated by President Donald Trump, was approved in a 54-45 vote despite concerns from Democrats about whether he would maintain the Fed’s political independence. Trump has repeatedly criticized Powell for not cutting interest rates aggressively enough and has publicly pressured the central bank over monetary policy. Warsh has pledged “regime change” at the Fed, signaling potential changes to bond holdings, economic forecasting, and policy communication. However, he takes office as inflation risks rise following the Iran conflict, with higher energy prices reducing the likelihood of near-term interest rate cuts and increasing speculation that rates could remain elevated for longer. Powell, whose term as chair ends May 15, said he will remain on the Fed’s board until 2028, citing concerns that political attacks on the institution could undermine confidence in the central bank’s independence. Warsh’s first Fed meeting as chair is scheduled for June 16th-17th.

 

CNN

CNBC

New York Times

Washington Post

U.S. wholesale inflation accelerated sharply in April, the Labor Department reported on Wednesday, with the producer price index (PPI) rising 1.4% month over month and 6% annually, marking the biggest yearly increase since December 2022 and far exceeding market expectations. The surge was driven primarily by energy costs, particularly a 15.6% jump in gasoline prices amid disruptions linked to the Iran war, although inflation pressures also broadened across the economy. Core PPI, excluding food and energy, increased 1%, while services prices rose 1.2%, the strongest monthly gain since March 2022. Trade services climbed 2.7%, suggesting tariffs imposed under President Donald Trump may be increasingly feeding through into prices, while machinery and equipment wholesaling margins also rose sharply. Economists said the data pointed to persistent and widening inflationary pressures beyond energy markets, reinforcing expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged for the remainder of the year. Markets also increased the probability of a future rate hike following the report.

 

CNN

CNBC

Reuters

LinkedIn has said it plans to cut about ​5% of its headcount as it reorganizes teams and focuses personnel on areas ⁠where its business is growing. Daniel Shapero, the Microsoft-owned social network's CEO, told employees in a memo on Wednesday that the firm must deliver increased impact to users and operate more profitably. He said reductions will affect a range of job functions, including engineering, product and marketing. “As part of our regular business planning, we’ve implemented organizational changes to best position ourselves for future success,” a LinkedIn spokesperson said. The layoff rationale was ​not for AI to replace jobs at the company, a source told Reuters.

 

U.S. News

Bloomberg

Reuters

Staffing group Adecco has said temporary hires outpaced permanent recruitment in the first quarter. Adecco CEO Denis Machuel said: "It's linked to ⁠the uncertainty and explains also why flexible placement is quite active, because the overall ​economy is pretty good." He observed that most of the group's clients "don't dare" to ​recruit on a permanent basis but the work needs to be done. Spain, Latin America and Asia Pacific were ​the markets where permanent recruitment bucked the trend, Machuel said.

 

Reuters

GameStop chief executive Ryan Cohen has threatened to take a $56bn takeover proposal for eBay directly to shareholders after the online marketplace rejected the unsolicited $125-per-share cash-and-stock offer as “neither credible nor attractive”. Mr Cohen criticized eBay’s board for refusing to engage on the proposal and said shareholders deserved the opportunity to evaluate the offer, with GameStop having already built a 5% stake in eBay to support a potential hostile approach. eBay had raised concerns over financing, leverage, governance and executive incentives, while Cohen countered by attacking eBay’s management performance, highlighting declining active users and chief executive Jamie Iannone’s pay package.

 

Financial Times

Reuters

A Federal Reserve survey found that 73% of Americans said they were either “doing OK” or “living comfortably” financially in 2025, unchanged from the previous year, despite continued concerns over inflation and the broader economy. The Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking showed households generally remained resilient, with 63% of adults able to cover a $400 emergency expense using cash or its equivalent. However, concerns over jobs and living costs increased, while lower-income, younger, and Black Americans reported growing financial pressure. Around 58% of respondents said rising prices had worsened their financial situation, and 77% said they had changed spending habits, including switching to cheaper products or delaying major purchases. The findings come as rising energy costs linked to the Iran conflict continue to fuel inflation concerns and complicate the Federal Reserve’s outlook for interest rates.

 

American Banker

Bloomberg

U.S. Senate Republicans have blocked Democratic efforts to overturn a series of Trump-era changes to consumer protection rules introduced at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), including measures covering overdraft fees, medical debt collection and protections for military families. The Senate rejected three Democratic resolutions largely along party lines, with Democrats arguing the Trump administration had weakened consumer protections since taking control of the CFPB in February 2025 under acting director Russell Vought. Democrats said the repeal of rules requiring banks to obtain customer consent before charging overdraft fees would increase costs for consumers, while Republicans defended the changes as reducing regulatory pressure on businesses. The CFPB has rescinded 67 policies since President Donald Trump returned to office, with Democrats accusing the administration of effectively dismantling the agency, while Republicans argued the bureau had become overly powerful and insufficiently accountable.

 

AP News

The Hill

Elon Musk’s settlement with the SEC raises “red flags”, according to U.S. district judge Sparkle Sooknanan, who said she would not “rubber stamp” the settlement that was agreed by the SEC and Musk’s trust earlier this month. The agreement would require Musk’s family trust to pay a $1.5m fine to resolve the SEC’s claims that Musk failed to timely disclose his purchase of shares in Twitter in 2022 as he took control of the social media platform later renamed X. The settlement dropped demands for the return of $150m in allegedly ill-gotten ​gains - reducing the total amount sought by 99%."Given all the irregularities I have noted, I have concerns," said the judge, who observed that she must consider several ‌factors, ⁠including the settlement's fairness to both sides, whether it is consistent with the public interest, and whether it is "tainted by improper collusion or corruption."

 

New York Post

Financial Times

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are promoting a more lenient approach to corporate fraud enforcement, encouraging Wall Street firms to voluntarily disclose wrongdoing in exchange for avoiding criminal charges, fines, and public disclosure of settlements. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, historically known for aggressive prosecutions of firms such as Drexel Burnham Lambert and SAC Capital, has been meeting with law firms and corporate advisers to explain its revised self-reporting policy under U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, the former chair of Apollo Global Management. Under the new framework, companies that self-report fraud could receive private non-prosecution agreements, even in cases involving widespread misconduct, senior executives, significant harm, or prior media exposure. Prosecutors may still pursue individuals involved, but corporations themselves could avoid charges and financial penalties if they cooperate and attempt to compensate victims. Unlike the Justice Department’s broader self-disclosure policy, the SDNY’s agreements would generally remain confidential and would not require public statements detailing the misconduct, further distinguishing the office’s approach from previous corporate enforcement practices.

 

AML Intelligence

Financial Times

Laura Swett, the chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the top U.S. energy regulator, has warned that PJM Interconnection, the operator of America’s biggest power grid, may be too big to function adequately amid the AI data center boom. PJM “perhaps simply has grown too big to function,” Swett said. “We simply cannot have a market that falls short at exactly the time when we must successfully navigate this once-in-a-generation opportunity to cement America’s energy leadership.” Bloomberg notes “the intense scrutiny” on PJM: one of the biggest American utilities, American Electric Power Co., is threatening to exit the system.

 

Bloomberg

A criminal case accusing British American Tobacco (BAT) ​- whose brands include Dunhill, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall - of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions by selling ‌cigarettes to North Korea has been dismissed after the company complied with a three-year deferred prosecution agreement. In a filing in the federal court ​in Washington, D.C., the Department of Justice ​said BAT "fully complied" with the April 2023 agreement, ⁠including by enhancing its compliance procedures, and paid about $630m including a fine and forfeiture.

 

Reuters