Burford Capital first company to delay result due to coronavirus

Burford Capital, the global finance and investment management firm, has become the first company to delay its financial results due to the impact of the coronavirus.

In a statement released at the end of last week, Burford Capital revealed that it expects to delay in latest financial results by “two to three weeks” after it was forced to close its New York office which it said will “inevitably take a toll on our finance and in-house legal teams whose work is collaborative”.

It also revealed that two employees “key” to its results process have had to self-isolate at home also stating it has third-party dependencies, ranging from auditors to printers to graphic designers, who are also affected by the coronavirus.

As things stand presently, the company said it does not expect the delay to extend beyond Easter.

Christopher Bogart, Burford’s CEO, said: “We regret the delay in the release of our 2019 results, but these are unprecedented circumstances and the health and safety of our team is our first priority. This is a rapidly evolving situation.

“Burford is acting on strong medical advice and following the lead of a number of other respected firms.”