PwC is to shut a Japanese affiliate because of its involvement in the Nikko Cordial broking scandal, leaving the world’s biggest accounting firm with a significantly smaller presence than rivals in the world’s second-largest economy.

Misuzu, one of Japan’s big four accounting firms, said on Tuesday it would wind down its operations because of possible penalties stemming from its work for Nikko Cordial, which faces delisting by the Tokyo Stock Exchange because of accounting fraud.