Accenture puts its $1.5 billion China unit under review after unsolicited approaches

Accenture has reportedly hired JPMorgan to run a strategic review of its Greater China business after it has received unsolicited approaches for the unit over the past year.

According to the Financial Times, people familiar with the matter said the business could be valued at as much as $1.5 billion.

Accenture didn’t reply to a request sent outside of business hours. JPMorgan declined to comment.

Hong Kong and Taiwan sit inside the unit up for review

Accenture’s website lists mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan under the Greater China unit. Private equity groups and a few strategic buyers are the expected suitors.

If the deal is done, Accenture may retain a significant minority stake in the business.

The $1.5 billion price tag is for the China unit alone. Accenture has a presence in 120 territories, and in fiscal 2026, its Asia Pacific market generated $10.68 billion in revenue.

For the year ended August 31, revenue in the Asia Pacific region rose 8% in local currency. Group revenues climbed to $74.2 billion.

Accenture has a record of “exiting businesses, offerings, countries, contracts that no longer meet our strategic or return thresholds,” chief financial officer Angie Park said at a recent investor event.

The review lands weeks after a 15.8% one-day share jump

The review comes weeks after a sharp rally in Accenture shares. The stock jumped as much as 24% on October 1 and closed up 15.8%.

Fourth-quarter results had beaten the company’s own revenue targets and allayed fears of an AI-driven slowdown in consulting.

The jump came after a year when billions were wiped off Accenture’s market value amid fears that AI would hollow out consulting.

Quarterly revenue was $18.7 billion, higher than the guided range of $17.75 billion to $18.40 billion. Accenture returned a record $11.5 billion to shareholders in fiscal year 2026.

Accenture guided for 3% to 6% revenue growth for fiscal 2027, above analysts’ expectations. It also expects to return at least $9.5 billion in cash to shareholders.

China’s economy grew 4.5% in the third quarter, up from 4.3% in the second, official data showed on October 19. Growth for the first nine months reached 4.6%, inside Beijing’s annual target of 4.5% to 5%.

Retail sales growth slowed to 0.4% in August, below a consensus forecast of 0.8%, Cryptopolitan reported. Investment in property and infrastructure fell 7.2% through August.

Real estate has been in a slump for five years and consumer spending is sluggish, crimping growth.

Cryptopolitan reports that the US and China agreed in late September to cut tariffs on $30 billion of each other’s goods after Xi Jinping’s three-day visit to Washington.

The two governments also agreed to extend a trade truce by two months and set up a trade council to implement commitments from previous talks in Kuala Lumpur.

There is another round of talks on artificial intelligence scheduled for November.

Don’t just read crypto news. Understand it. Subscribe to our newsletter. It's free.