Public Company Accounting Oversight Board member Christina Ho plans to resign by the end of January as a shakeup is expected at the board.
Ho said in a statement Tuesday that she formally notified the Securities and Exchange Commission of her intention to resign effective Jan. 31, 2026, or the date when the SEC appoints a successor for her position as a member of the board, whichever comes earlier. SEC chair Paul Atkins announced in July he would begin searching for new PCAOB board members. That announcement came only a few days after forcing former PCAOB chair Erica Williams to resign. Ho's term expired Oct. 24, 2025, and she said she has chosen not to apply for re-appointment.
"I take great pride in my contributions during my tenure, particularly in serving as a credible lone dissenter who was able to prevent the adoption of some potentially harmful standards and rules, and my leadership in formulating strategic recommendations about emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence through the work of the PCAOB's Technology Innovation Alliance Working Group," Ho said in her statement. "However, I believe that now is the time to make way for a new Board to bring fresh and forward-looking leadership to the PCAOB. I am optimistic that the SEC will appoint highly qualified individuals to serve on the Board. It is my hope that they will be committed to common sense audit regulation, fostering resilience in the audit marketplace and promoting innovation. These priorities are essential for protecting investors and strengthening our capital markets."
Ho brought her technology expertise to the PCAOB, including long experience with artificial intelligence. According to her online bio, she was previously vice president of government analytics and innovation at Elder Research, where she scaled up the data science consulting practice, focusing on AI and machine learning solutions for government transformation. At the University of Maryland, she was a controller and interim CFO, modernizing financial operations with AI-driven analytics. In 2017, Ho founded PolicyInsights Inc., a technology-driven consultancy focused on government data transparency and policy innovation. She spent her early career at Deloitte & Touche LLP, rising to audit senior manager. She's both a CPA and a Certified Information System Auditor.
She has functioned as something as a gadfly at the PCAOB, voting against some of the proposed standards, such as the controversial NOCLAR standard for noncompliance with laws and regulations, which the PCAOB called off last year amid widespread opposition by audit firms, as well as the firm and engagement metrics and firm reporting standards, which were ultimately shelved as well. Ho publicly complained on LinkedIn last year that Senators Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, were "persecuting" her when they sent a letter to the PCAOB asking about high deficiency rates at auditing firms and cited a speech by Ho at an Institute of Internal Auditors event. "The fact that the Senators decided to single me out is troubling because I believe they are trying to stifle me from expressing views inconsistent with their false narrative," she wrote at the time.
Ho has reportedly said that the recommendations of the Technology Innovation Alliance Working Group that she chaired at the PCAOB are finally being followed after the departure of Williams, whose successor wished her well.
"In her time at the PCAOB, Christina has championed innovation as a driver of improvement in audit quality," said PCAOB acting chair George Botic in a statement. "We thank her for her service and wish her all the best in her future endeavors."
