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The Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW) has “severely” reprimanded Bishop Fleming and ordered the firm to pay a financial penalty of £124,250, plus a cost of £26,885 after an investigation into its audit practices.
News comes after the firm’s Exeter office issued unmodified audit opinions on financial statements that failed to comply with United Kingdom Accounting Standards regarding a loan transaction and going concern disclosures.
According to the Conduct Committee, the firm failed to identify that certain disclosures were materially inconsistent with auditor knowledge and lacked sufficient evidence regarding the use of the going concern basis.
Further breaches involved the failure to obtain appropriate audit evidence on credits from intercompany balance waivers and inadequate disclosures regarding transactions undertaken by audited entities.
In a separate matter, the firm received a £700 fine and a reprimand for failing to comply with client money regulations between 30 June 2020 and 28 August 2020.
The firm also held funds in excess of £10k for a client for more than 30 days without paying them into a designated client bank account, violating regulatory requirements.
In the ICAEW’s firm records, the Conduct Committee said: “Bishop Fleming LLP issued unmodified audit opinions on the financial statements of the entities set out at Schedule A, which stated that the financial statements had been prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Accounting Standards when they were not.”
