Why it’s time boards faced up to the corporate culture challenge January 11, 2015 CULTURE in UK business came under the spotlight in 2014, as executive remuneration, market manipulation, supplier arrangements and so on drew comment and criticism. Where does the responsibility lie for ensuring ethical corporate behaviour, and who is accountable when culture is found to be at fault? The Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) 2014 revision of the [...]
New Quindell deputy chairman Jim Sutcliffe to step down from the Financial Reporting Council January 16, 2015 New Quindell deputy chairman Jim Sutcliffe will step down from his role as chairman of the Financial Reporting Council's (FRC) codes and standards committee "with immediate effect", the organisation said today. Sutcliffe was appointed as Quindell's new deputy chairman earlier this week, causing its shares to rise more than 26 per cent. But the troubled [...]
Watchdog to shame worst bank auditors December 1, 2014 THREE banks and three auditors have failed a set of tests set by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), which reviewed their audits, it said today. The audit watchdog fears banks are failing to consistently measure and report loan-loss provisions. Four of the seven auditors reviewed have improved the quality of their work, making sure they [...]
UK fraud office ends Autonomy accounts probe January 19, 2015 THE BATTLE between Hewlett-Packard (HP) and the former executives of UK-based software company Autonomy took another turn yesterday as the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) closed its probe into the firm saying there wasn’t enough evidence for a conviction. Autonomy, then a darling of the UK’s technology startup community, was sold to HP for $11.7bn (£7.7bn) [...]
HP vs Autonomy: “Insufficient evidence” to convict, says Serious Fraud Office January 19, 2015 More news on the epic battle between Hewlett-Packard (HP) and UK-based software company Autonomy. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said today it has closed its investigation into the British company, despite accusations from HP that it had committed accounting fraud. Autonomy, then a darling of the UK's technology startup community, was sold to HP for [...]
Tesco share price continues slump as Financial Reporting Council says it’s “closely monitoring” the situation September 24, 2014 The UK’s accounting regulator is keeping an eye on Tesco’s investigation into accounting errors which has caused more than £2bn to be wiped off its shares in the past two days. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said this morning it is "monitoring the situation closely" after Tesco’s announcement on Monday that it overstated profit estimates [...]
Directors fear Financial Reporting Council future risks behaviour code: “Companies do not have crystal balls” September 16, 2014 Executives risk being punished under new guidelines for simply failing to have perfect knowledge of the future, the Institute of Directors (IoD) warned this morning. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) wants bosses to give investors a fuller account of possible risks facing their company over the years ahead. The aim is to promote long-term thinking. “This [...]
Tesco share price rises as it confirms Serious Fraud Office has launched a criminal investigation October 29, 2014 The Serious Fraud Office has launched a formal criminal investigation into accounting errors at Tesco which led to a £263m profit black hole. Despite that, shares rose 2.6 per cent in mid-afternoon trading. The SFO had previously said it was “following developments at Tesco with interest” after the supermarket’s profit overstatement was first revealed in [...]
Tesco sheds three more executives in wake of profit overstatement October 14, 2014 Tesco has asked three non-executive directors to leave the company, taking the total number of departures in less than a month since it revealed a £250m black hole in its profit to eight. The supermarket said in a statement: "We have asked three employees to step aside to facilitate the investigation into the potential overstatement [...]
Investors come first in the new corporate governance code September 3, 2014 THE latest version of the UK Corporate Governance Code will be launched by the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) this month. Setting the standards for good governance, companies with a premium listing must report on their compliance with the Code, but many others adhere to it to demonstrate to investors their commitment to best practice. The [...]