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’Sino-Forest still has many questions to answer
And it can start by answering: what’s the deal with these alleged whistleblowers (see below)?
The interim report published by Sino-Forest claims to exonerate the company, but that’s going too far, too soon.
A Sino Fudge
Inquiry Clears Sino-Forest of Short Seller’s Fraud Charges screamed numerous headlines on Tuesday, following this statement from the embattled Chinese tree churner. An extract, quoting vice chairman and CEO Judson Martin:
Jobs and the City…
Whether you’re an increasingly impecunious chief executive at a mid-ranked UK company, or one of the City’s increasingly flush “AVPs” (assistance vice-presidents), some – interestingly timed – reports on Monday are telling us a few things.
C(onn)aught out
Crash, bang, wallop.
That’s the sound of Connaught’s shares on Monday morning:
Shares in the UK support services and social housing specialist were off 75.8 per cent at the open following news that the company could be about to breach its banking covenants.
The expedited Audit
Accounting-geeks (like us) might remember that at the start of last year there was much discussion as to whether Britain’s big four auditing firms — PwC, Deloitte, Ernst & Young, and KPMG — would be able to sign off the 2008 end-of-year accounts of the country’s beleaguered banks.
Court asked to back Lehman scheme
PwC, the administrators of Lehman Brothers in Europe, on Monday asked the UK’s Court of Appeal to approve a plan it says will help speed the winding-up of the collapsed bank. The consultancy firm is attempting to overturn an August court ruling that blocked the plan,
Matalan weighs £1.5bn sale
Matalan, the privately owned UK discount retailer, is weighing a £1.5bn sale after a number of expressions of interest. Buy-out group CVC is among parties to have approached Matalan, which was taken private by its founder and controlling shareholder John Hargreaves amid acrimony with institutional investors and non-executive directors three years ago.
Record fees for Lehman wind-up
The winding-up of Lehman Brothers’ European operations is heading into record territory for accountancy and legal fees in the region, as well as for the size of claims made against the overseas parent company.
Aviva to list Delta Lloyd
Aviva was set to launch a listing of its Dutch subsidiary Delta Lloyd on Monday in which it hopes to raise about £1bn by year-end, in Europe’s biggest IPO for at least 18 months. The UK’s second-largest insurer has struggled to influence the management of Delta Lloyd despite its 92% holding.
KPMG, PwC raided in Iceland probe
Police have raided the offices of KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers in Reykjavik, seizing documents and computer data as part of a probe into alleged criminal activity at three collapsed Icelandic banks,
Bovine accounting
Step forward then, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, again. This time in relation to the subprime-lender Cattles.
From the FT:
PwC, the Big Four accountancy firm, is being investigated over its auditing of Cattles,
PwC: ‘Bad banks’ should have key role
Removing toxic assets from US and British banks’ balance sheets could be speeded up if the billions of dollars of government guarantees on these assets can be sold to private investors, according to a report by PwC.
Banks warned on subsidiaries’ assets
International banks will have to hold more assets in their subsidiaries if they want to avoid a repeat of the chaos caused by the fall of Lehman Brothers, according to PwC, the failed bank’s European administrators.
Satyam/PwC auditors arrest…
A little more detail on the arrest of two of PwC’s Satyam auditors yesterday. The India Business Standard reports that the two have been arrested for “conspiracy” and “cheating”. The International Business Times,
PwC staff detained in Satyam probe
Indian police have detained two PwC auditors in their first move against the professional services firm over the scandal afflicting Satyam Computer Services. Police said the pair were detained for interrogation over the scandal,
‘Pope Catholic’ – PwC
PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS SAYS ITS OPINIONS ON SATYAM STATEMENTS MAY BE RENDERED INACCURATE
What, these?
Auditors’ Report to the Members of Satyam Computer Services Limited..we report that:
(a) We have obtained all the information and explanations,
Satyam fights for survival
Satyam Computer Services, the company at the centre of one of India’s largest corporate scandals, was on Thursday fighting for survival as managers moved to appoint a new auditor and an investment bank to find a buyer.
Accounting firms drawn into Madoff scandal
Top accounting firms were hoodwinked by Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50bn fraud as well as several top banks and some of the world’s biggest hedge fund investors, according to lists of service providers to Madoff-linked funds.
Madoff loser eyes legal move on PwC
Fairfield Greenwich, believed to be the biggest single loser in Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50bn “Ponzi” scheme, is considering suing PwC, its own accountants, for failing to detect the fraud, as victims search for sources of compensation for their losses.
In the matter of Lehman brothers (PWC) vs. Mayfair…
25.4 If the present situation continues for very much longer the funds are virtually certain to lose the confidence of their investors so that they will suffer revenue impairment; the confidence of the boards of the companies in which they have made their investments;
Hedge funds fight for Lehman-related assets
Hedge funds have started the first of what is expected to be a series of legal actions against administrators of the main European arm of Lehman Brothers in an effort to recover $40bn of assets frozen when the business collapsed last week.
AIG’s revised subprime losses raise fears of tough audits
Insurer American International Group sent fresh tremors through financial markets after raising its estimate of losses during October and November from insuring mortgage-related instruments from $1bn to nearly $5bn,