The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board announced today that George Diacont, who has served as Director of Registration and Inspection since the Board's 2003 inception, will retire in early March.
"George has devoted his long and distinguished career to serving the public interest. At the PCAOB, George built from scratch a world-class inspection program of more than 350 talented and experienced inspectors, and instilled a culture of unwavering focus on protecting investor interests," said PCAOB Chairman James R. Doty. "He leaves a great legacy for which the Board is deeply thankful."
Mr. Diacont is the chief architect of the PCAOB's inspection program, through which the Board conducts independent evaluations of the quality of public company audits. During his tenure, the PCAOB has conducted more than 1,200 inspections of registered public accounting firms in the United States and more than 250 inspections in 35 other countries. Under Mr. Diacont's leadership, the PCAOB has identified numerous accounting and auditing problems and encouraged firms to make appropriate improvements to protect investors' interests in reliable audits.
"I am extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate in the creation of a division tasked with the public interest responsibility to inspect public accounting firms. I appreciate the hard work and dedication of the many talented professionals who contributed to the success of this effort," said Mr. Diacont.
Prior to his eight years at the PCAOB, Mr. Diacont served for five years as the Chief Accountant of Nasdaq Listing Investigations, where he was responsible for the investigation of issuers who may have engaged in fraudulent practices or other activities. Before joining Nasdaq, Mr. Diacont spent more than 20 years at the Securities and Exchange Commission, serving in a number of key positions, including Acting SEC Chief Accountant and Chief Accountant in the Division of Enforcement. Mr. Diacont began his accounting career as a staff auditor at Haskins & Sells. He also served five years as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Mr. Diacont earned a B.S. in Accounting from Towson State College and an M.B.A. from the University of Maryland. He is a Certified Public Accountant, licensed in Maryland.