There were 16 recently reported auditor changes across Europe in January 2019. It is important to note, however, this is not a comprehensive list; not all changes are, or have been, disclosed. Of the 16 announced, ten are listed on the London Stock Exchange, four are listed on the Cyprus Stock Exchange, one is listed on the Nasdaq OMX Stockholm, and one is listed on Euronext Brussels.
Six of the ten auditor changes reported among companies listed on the LSE were listed on the main market and four on the AIM. Of the six listed on the main market, half of the changes were effective immediately while the other half were announced to be effective at a later date.
The four auditor changes disclosed among companies listed on the AIM were all effective immediately. VinaLand Ltd, while still a client of PwC, switched from the Chinese affiliate to the Vietnam affiliate.
In Cyprus, HLB was dismissed by four companies on January 8, 2019. The reason behind all four dismissals was a limitation on the scope; the audit firm did not receive all the information deemed necessary to complete the audit and was forced to resign. No engaged auditor was announced, but with all four of the companies’ fiscal years ending December 31, it is likely they will appoint a new auditor soon.
There was only one auditor change among companies listed on the Nasdaq OMX Stockholm in January 2019. SAS AB announced they will replace PwC but have not chosen a new auditor yet. The company will make the change effective during their 2019 Annual General Meeting (AGM).
Lastly, Quest for Growth NV announced they will change from KPMG (Belgium) to PwC (Belgium) during the 2019 AGM.
Audit Analytics continues to track auditor changes across Europe as the disclosures become available.
For more information about this post or our European databases, please contact us at info@auditanalytics.com or call 508-476-7007.