KPMG Law and EQS Group cooperate on IT-based whistleblowing systems

KPMG Law Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH (KPMG Law) and EQS Group, a leading technology provider in the field of corporate compliance, have entered into a cooperation for a whistleblower system and case management as a holistic compliance solution.

A whistleblower system is a core component of any compliance management system. The German Corporate Governance Code also expressly recommends the establishment of a whistleblower system. The cooperation between KPMG Law and EQS Group offers a holistic compliance solution, consisting of a confidential reporting channel and subsequent case management, covering all technical and legal aspects.

“From the duty to avoid legal violations, which is subject to sanctions, follows the organizational duty of the management to enable sufficient control of the company’s actions. An essential prerequisite for this is to organize the flow of information and communication within the company in such a way that the management receives all risk-relevant information,” says Dr. Bernd Federmann, Partner at KPMG Law. “A properly designed and operated whistleblower system protects whistleblowers and those affected by whistleblowing, provides an early warning system to control risk, and helps protect the company and management from liability in the event of compliance violations.”

As part of the cooperation, EQS Group provides the technical implementation and operation of the IT-based reporting system “EQS Integrity Line”, through which whistleblowers can submit reports anonymously and securely. EQS Integrity Line meets the current requirements for efficient case management – from the receipt of information to the final report. The cloud-based tool is user-friendly and is available in over 50 languages.

As a full service law firm with an international network of law firms, KPMG Law offers legally compliant implementation of the system – worldwide. In the regular operation of the whistleblower system, KPMG Law relieves companies and takes over the pre-sorting and plausibility check of incoming tips as well as the case preparation and legal assessment with recommendations for action – competently in all areas of law and with calculable effort. In cooperation with the Compliance & Forensic department of KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft (KPMG), KPMG Law is also able to offer in-house investigations from a single source. “With this cooperation, we are taking another step toward implementing our legal tech strategy,” explains Dr. Konstantin von Busekist, partner and head of compliance and white-collar criminal law at KPMG Law. “Our approach is to combine our services with market-relevant technology platforms and provide our clients with litigation advice and technology expertise along with our legal expertise.” Alexander Geschonneck, who leads KPMG’s Compliance & Forensic team, adds, “Technology is an essential building block in applying the complementary service offerings of KPMG Law and KPMG AG Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft to the client’s entire compliance lifecycle.”

“EQS Group shares the same understanding of the importance of whistleblowing systems and is pleased that KPMG Law will in future use EQS Integrity Line as the technical basis for a holistic whistleblowing system,” said Achim Weick, founder and CEO of EQS Group, looking forward to the cooperation.