Senior partners at the Big Four firm have been informing teams in recent weeks that their pay will be frozen unless they have been promoted or taken on extra responsibilities.

The move is in stark contrast to the psy rises that have been awarded in recent years when accountancy firms across the UK were fighting to hold on to staff and draw new additions to the firm.

However, over the last year work mergers and acquisitions have dropped across the industry as rising interest rates halted dealmaking and businesses spend less on consultants as they hold off for a potential economic recession.

A spokeswoman for KPMG told The Times: “To attract and retain the best talent, we benchmark our salaries each year to remain competitive and we continue to invest in our people. In light of softened market demand this year, any pay increases have prioritised those who have been promoted.”

Those workers eligible for a bonus will get one this year, however, it not be as large as recent annual bonus cheques. KPMG said this reflected “the challenging economic and market environment”.