Fraud involving company heads on the increase
COMPANY bosses, including those working at the highest level in chief executive or managing director’s offices, are increasingly committing more fraud, according to a report out today.
The survey by accountants KPMG found that board members at divisional, subsidiary and corporate level across the world commit nearly one fifth of all fraud cases.
The level has increased from 11 per cent of all white collar crimes in 2007, to 18 per cent this year.
The report analyses the pattern of fraud from 348 sample cases across 69 countries in which KPMG has investigated for its clients.
About 40 per cent of cases in the survey involved males between the age of 36 and 45 years old, with the typical fraudster often working in a finance-related role.
More than 50 per cent of cases surveyed involved a senior manager or board member.
Richard Powell, UK forensic partner at KPMG, said: “It is pretty surprising that companies have significantly failed to respond to warning signs, particularly in light of the recession.
“The need to ensure that areas susceptible to fraud risks are properly identified is paramount.”