KPMG has announced that it has signed a conditional agreement to sell its UK pensions practice to NewCo.

NewCo is backed by private equity firm Exponent and KPMG UK’s current pensions partners.

Once the sale has been completed, all 20 partners and approximately 500 staff currently employed by KPMG’s UK pensions practice transfer to NewCo.

Current KPMG UK head of pensions, Andrew Coles, will become NewCo’s chief executive officer.

In a statement, KPMG said: “The company will announce further details upon completion.”

In October, KPMG stated that it was in advanced negotiations about the sale of its pensions advisory unit division as it looked to restructure its business.

KPMG’s pensions division advises clients on the management of pension assets worth over £50bn.

Talks about a sale of the unit have reportedly been taking place since June, with a number of other bidders submitting offers to KPMG.

Regulatory pressure on KPMG — and its other big four rivals — has increased this year following the discovery of flawed audits carried out by the company in 2018, which led to it being fined £18m by the Financial Reporting Council.

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