Latest news with #audit
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
PetroFrontier Corp. Provides Update on the Delay in Filing of its 2024 Annual Financial Statements and Announces Delay in Filing of its Q1 Interim Financial Statements
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - May 31, 2025) - PetroFrontier Corp. (TSXV: PFC) ("PetroFrontier" or the "Company") announces that, further to its news releases issued on May 2 and 16, 2025 whereby the Company announced that the Alberta Securities Commission issued a management cease trade order ("MCTO") to PetroFrontier pursuant to its application under National Policy 12-203 Management Cease Trade Orders ("NP 12-203") in respect of the default regarding the delay of the filing of its annual financial statements, accompanying management's discussion and analysis and related chief executive officer ("CEO") and chief financial officer ("CFO") certifications for the financial year ended December 31, 2024 (collectively, the "Annual Filings"), PetroFrontier is experiencing continued delays with respect to the Annual Filings related to the receipt of financial information and other required information from the general partner of the Company's limited partnership investment. The continued delays have impacted the ability of the Company's external auditor to complete the audit. The Company currently anticipates that it will be in a position to file the Annual Filings on or before June 26, 2025. The Company further announces that as a result of the delay in filing the Annual Filings, the Company's interim financial statements for the three months ended March 31, 2025, the accompanying management discussion and analysis and related CEO and CFO certifications ("Q1 Filings") will not be filed by the prescribed deadline of May 30, 2025. The Company currently anticipates that it will be in a position to file the Q1 Filings on or before July 10, 2025. An extension to the MCTO has been sought and is under consideration, however, there is no certainty that the extension will be granted. The Company confirms that, other than as disclosed in its news releases dated May 2 and 16, 2025, or as set out herein, there is no other material information concerning the affairs of the Company that has not been generally disclosed. The MCTO prohibits the CEO and the CFO from trading in securities of PetroFrontier for so long as the Q1 Filings are not filed. The issuance of the MCTO does not affect the ability of persons other than the CEO and the CFO of the Company to trade in the Company's securities. Until the Annual Filings and Q1 Filings have been filed, the Company confirms that it intends to continue to satisfy the provisions of the alternative information guidelines specified in NP 12-203 for so long as it remains in default as a result of the late filing of the Annual Filings and Q1 Filings by issuing biweekly default status reports in the form of further news releases. About PetroFrontier Corp. PetroFrontier is a junior energy company currently focused on developing two Mannville heavy oil plays in the Cold Lake and Wabasca areas of Alberta. PetroFrontier's head office is in Calgary, Alberta and its common shares are listed for trading on the Exchange under the symbol "PFC". For More Information ContactKelly Kimbley, CEO & DirectorPetroFrontier 700, 903 - 8 Avenue Alberta, Canada T2P 0P7Telephone: (403) 650-6355Email: info@ Forward-Looking Information and Risk Factors This news release contains statements and information that may constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, including statements identified by the use of words such as "will", "expects", "positions", "believe", "potential" and similar words, including negatives thereof, or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking information is not representative of historical facts or information or current condition, but instead represent only the Company's beliefs regarding future events, plans or objectives, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the Company's control. Generally, such forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or may contain statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "will continue", "will occur" or "will be achieved". The forward-looking information contained herein may include, but is not limited to, information concerning the estimated filing dates of the Annual Filings and Q1 Filings. By identifying such information and statements in this manner, the Company is alerting the reader that such information and statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such information and statements. Some of these risks include, but are not limited to, the risk that the Annual Filings and Q1 Filings are filed later than anticipated, the risk that the Company's MCTO is revoked for any reason, in which case there is a risk that trading in the Company's securities may halted by the TSX Venture Exchange and/or cease traded temporarily by the Canadian securities commissions until such time as the Annual Filings and Q1 Filings are filed on SEDAR+. Additional information regarding risks and uncertainties of the Company's business are contained under the heading "Business Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company's Management's Discussion & Analysis for the condensed interim consolidated financial statements for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and the Company's other public filings which are available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. In connection with the forward-looking information contained in this news release, the Company has made certain assumptions. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing, and the expectations contained in, the forward-looking information and statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information and statements, and no assurance or guarantee can be given that such forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information and statements. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date of this news release, and the Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information and/or forward-looking statements that are contained or referenced herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking information and statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. To view the source version of this press release, please visit Sign in to access your portfolio
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Scathing rebuke of Ramal's campaign finances in decision letter seeking ‘significant consequences' by the courts
Committee writes letter about referring an audit of former mayoral candidate Khalil Ramal to a special prosecutor for potential legal action. Two days after the Compliance Audit Committee (CAC) referred an audit of former mayoral candidate Khalil Ramal to a special prosecutor for potential legal action, a strongly-worded decision letter details the rationale behind the committee's decision. An audit of Ramal's campaign finances by William Molson concluded that there were a number of apparent violations of the Municipal Elections Act including not including in his filing the names/addresses of donors who gave over $100, exceeding the candidate contribution limit ($25,000) by $11,916.27 and using an unlicensed accountant to confirm the accuracy of the document submitted to the city clerk. The decision letter reads, 'this apparent lack of respect for and/or understanding of the record-keeping and reporting requirements of the Act is of great concern to the Committee.' It goes on to recommend the courts impose a harsh penalty if the Act was violated, 'the public interest warrants significant consequences both to denounce such conduct and to set an example for the Candidate and others in future municipal election cycles.' Penalties for violating the Municipal Elections Act could include: up to $25,000 fine ineligibility to vote or run in next election up to six months in prison forfeiture of your elected office additional fine (amount spending limit exceeded) The letter describes Ramal's use of an unlicensed auditor as 'startling'. It warns that the burden of confirming the accuracy of Financial Statements filed by thousands of candidates across Ontario should not fall on taxpayers. The letter emphasizes the onus is on the use of licensed accounting professionals to ensure public trust in municipal campaign finances, 'The audit requirement of the (Municipal Elections) Act is the cornerstone of the financial accountability and transparency framework established by the Act.' On Wednesday, Ramal challenged the compliance audit's findings during a CAC meeting. 053025 - Ramal audit Committee writes letter about referring an audit of former mayoral candidate Khalil Ramal to a special prosecutor for potential legal action. However, Molson told the committee that Ramal's campaign finances submitted to the city clerk suffered from 'massively incomplete information,' and that much of the campaign's revenue and expenses flowed outside of its dedicated bank account. He told them he was unaware that the individual who audited his campaign's Financial Statement was not licensed at the time. Ramal said he eventually provided Molson with his donors' names and addresses, and claimed that his personal contribution did not exceed the candidate limit because a $21,000 invoice remains unpaid. The committee wasn't swayed by his arguments. In its written decision the committee confirmed, '(We) therefore decided to authorize the commencement of such proceedings by appointing an independent prosecutor.' Molson's examination of available documents, plus telephone and written exchanges with Ramal confirmed several additional violations raised in an initial complaint: A list of financial donations over $100 failed to include the mailing address and/or name of contributor A contribution for $1,495 exceeded the $1,200 limit No expenses were declared for telephone, internet or website hosting fees Expenses of $2,034 and $339 for 'steel' should be subject to the spending limit Other 'revenue not deemed a contribution' lists '3x50' worth $150, which would exceed $25 limit The committee's written decision acknowledged their belief that Ramal did not deliberately disregard the record-keeping and reporting requirements, 'rather, he lacked the ability and knowledge to understand what was required, and he did not have the support of a campaign manager or financial officer who did.' The letter is signed by all three members appointed to the Compliance Audit Committee, Andrew Wright (Chair), Dan Ross (Member), and Christene Scrimgeour (Member). Ramal placed second to Mayor Josh Morgan in the 2022 municipal election receiving almost 23 per cent of the votes cast.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
How a ‘bulls--t jobs' boom captured the Big Four accountants
Working as an auditor at one of Britain's top accounting firms was once one of the most prestigious jobs in the City. In return for scrutinising the accounts of major companies to spot any potential fraud or irregularities, accountants were rewarded with good pay, long-term stability and steady progression. But today, jobs at the leading firms are viewed differently. Instead, in the words of one former 'big four' consultant, the roles are now about 'making money from bulls--t by pretending to be an expert in front of large corporate clients'. Critics say the decline is emblematic of the transformation of the so-called 'big four' from traditional audit and accounting businesses to sprawling sellers of consultancy services. All four of Britain's top accountancy giants – KPMG, Deloitte, EY and PwC – now have huge consulting arms that generate billions of pounds in revenue each year and employ thousands of people throughout Britain. Prof Atul Shah, of City University, London, says the pivot to consulting has fundamentally transformed the 'culture and mindset' of the big four. 'I trained with Peat Marwick [now KPMG] in the early 1980s. It was mainly an audit firm then, and the culture was one of public interest and professional scepticism,' says Prof Shah. 'Consulting has become at least a third of the revenue for the big four and this has made them highly commercial firms, with strong revenue generation incentives for partners.' He argues the firms' prioritisation of their consulting businesses has ultimately led to their involvement in a series of high-profile audit scandals involving major firms ranging from BHS to Carillion. When the big four first made a move into consulting, the market was not a new one. The consulting industry traces its origins back to the early 20th century with the emergence of companies such as McKinsey & Co, which aimed to bring a scientific approach to running businesses. The big four started building their own consulting businesses in the early 1990s, before pursuing a renewed push in the wake of the 2008 financial crash as they looked to capitalise on widespread economic volatility. Critics say this shift has locked the big four into selling increasingly broad advice in order to keep growing their revenue figures and maintain their partner payouts. It has worked so far, with the revenues of the big four being boosted and annual partner payouts at firms such as Deloitte rising to more than £1m. For these firms, there are strong incentives to keep their consulting businesses growing. Prof Laura Empson, of Bayes Business School, says: 'One of the challenges is that if you start slipping down the rankings, you can no longer rely on the loyalty of the partners to stay. They will be poached, and they will move. No one wants to work for the losing team.' Tamzen Isacsson, the chief executive of the Management Consultancies Association (MCA), says the consulting industry's recent growth is evidence that their services continue to be 'valued by clients for the independence, the transformation, and efficiency they deliver'. 'The British consulting sector has doubled in revenue over the past five years, exports have trebled and MCA member firms have supported clients in the UK and across the world with critical services during a period of unprecedented global economic disruption,' Isacsson says. However, insiders argue that accounting giants' reliance on revenues from their consulting business means they have filled their ranks with people carrying out nonsensical tasks. 'It's just educated people making PowerPoint slides of nonsense for companies,' one former big four consultant says. 'People would be working 13 hours a day to just stay slightly ahead of their clients.' He says meetings could be painful. 'We famously did one project on new laws facing the car industry. The whole time we were going: 'What are we doing?' We just really didn't have a clue. 'In the final showdown meeting with the client, we were just rambling off laws, and the clients kept saying, 'Oh yeah we know that one.' We'd basically spent hours trying to do this project and the client kept telling us, 'Oh yeah, we knew about that'. 'But there was this one really obscure law I'd found from Arizona,' the former consultant says. 'I'd found it after hours of searching and we mentioned that one, and the client said, 'Oh we haven't heard about that one yet'.' For those still in the industry, it is an increasingly rare occurrence. They say it is becoming more difficult for consultants to outsmart their clients, threatening to call time on the 'bulls--t jobs' boom. 'At one time, clients hadn't been as well educated as the consultants, they hadn't thought about strategy,' one ex-big four partner says. 'You can't pull the wool over the clients' eyes any more because they're just as smart and educated as you are. A lot have MBAs of their own.' 'Glorified outsourcing' Critics say the big four now risk falling into the trap of competing for increasingly low-level work by cutting their costs and tightening their margins at the expense of the quality of their work and their broader reputations. One Deloitte partner says the situation could see a race to the bottom in which the big four are undercut further by firms including Accenture or Tata Consulting Services, which now outsource much of their low-level work to places such as India. Already, at some accountancy giants, the consulting businesses have started to become problematic. One former HR executive at KPMG says the consultancy divisions now increasingly operate like glorified outsourcers. They say the pursuit of more low-level work has contributed to poor morale inside these divisions. The mood is only becoming more sour. Consultants have repeatedly been targeted for lay-offs during economic downturns, further damaging morale and undermining the firms' reputation for stability. McKinsey recently made some of the biggest layoffs in its history, and has cut more than 10pc of its staff over the past two years in response to the slump in the consulting industry. Luke Johnson, the chairman of Gail's Bakery and entrepreneur, says things are only heading in one direction. 'This is just the start,' he wrote in response to the McKinsey cuts. 'AI is eating these professions alive.' Widespread backlash against consultants now threatens to make the situation worse. In the UK, Labour is currently seeking to cut back government spending on consultants with the aim of saving taxpayers more than £1bn by the end of next year. The Trump administration in the US has gone even further under the leadership of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, which has slashed billions worth of consulting contracts. Trump's cuts have already led to redundancies in firms including Deloitte and Accenture. The problem the big four face is that they seem stuck with their so-called 'multidisciplinary models'. EY's own attempt to separate its audit from its consulting division by splitting itself into two failed dramatically in 2023, amid a clash over which side would take control of the accounting firm's highly profitable tax division. The failed 'Project Everest' split initiative cost the firm more than $600m (£445m) in advisory fees. Since then, all of the big four firms have ruled out future split plans, even as questions remain over the extent to which the model works. Lisa Fernihough, the head of KPMG's advisory unit, says: 'We're committed to the multidisciplinary model because it's right for our people, our clients, and our business ... This model also gives our people exciting and varied careers across the firm, including in audit.' More broadly, with consultants holding major power over the way the accounting giants work and operate, executives may have little choice but to keep pressing on. Insiders at the accountancy firms may agree that their ranks are filled with nonsense roles. But, for now at least, the big four are likely to keep the 'bulls--t jobs' boom going for as long as possible.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nidec Announces in Relation to Disclosure Information Regarding Consolidated Financial Statements
KYOTO, Japan, May 29, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nidec Corporation hereby announces that at the Board of Directors meeting held today, it was resolved to post the contents of the attachment on its Internet website (address: The audits of overseas subsidiaries are taking time, and we have not yet received the accounting auditor's report on the consolidated financial statements. The accounting auditor's report on the consolidated financial statements is currently being prepared in time for the 52nd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders, scheduled to be held on June 20, 2025, but is yet to be determined. We will notify you as soon as we receive it. (Attachment) To our shareholders Disclosure information regarding consolidated financial statements We would like to express our sincere gratitude to our shareholders for their ongoing support and encouragement. Our 52nd business report, financial statements, and consolidated financial statements have already been submitted to the Audit and Supervisory Committee and the accounting auditor. However, due to the time required for the audits of our overseas subsidiaries, we have not yet received the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements. We have already sent the materials for the 52nd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders to shareholders who have requested to receive them in writing. These materials include the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements and the audit report of the Audit and Supervisory Committee, the contents of which are subject to receipt of the accounting auditor's audit report. These audit reports were prepared and sent in anticipation of receiving the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements. However, as stated above, we have not yet received the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements at this time. In this regard, the audit reports of the Audit and Supervisory Committee, which are based on the assumption that the audit report of the accounting auditor on the consolidated financial statements has not yet been received at this time, are posted on the websites listed in the notice of the meeting. In addition, once the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements has been received and the Audit and Supervisory Committee's audit based on said audit report has been completed, the Audit and Supervisory Committee's audit report and the accounting auditor's audit report on the consolidated financial statements will be posted on the website. Furthermore, based on the results of the accounting audits conducted by the accounting auditors for the consolidated financial statements, if any corrections are made to the information to be disclosed in the consolidated financial statements going forward, we will take measures such as promptly posting such corrections on our website (address: We would appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter. May 29, 2025Mitsuya KishidaRepresentative Director and PresidentNIDEC Corporation View source version on Contacts Teruaki UragoGeneral ManagerInvestor Relations+81-75-935-6140ir@
ABC News
4 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Auditor-general finds there 'could have been fraud' at government-owned entity DevelopmentWA
An audit into DevelopmentWA, sparked in part by the conviction of a former public servant who stole millions of taxpayer dollars, has found significant vulnerabilities to fraud at the government-owned entity. DevelopmentWA is one of Western Australia's biggest land and property developers, but unlike commercial developers, it is owned by the state government — meaning any profits or losses belong to taxpayers. Auditor-general Caroline Spencer said the intention of the audit, which looked at transactions between 2017 and 2022, was to determine whether there were irregularities in public land sale information that could indicate fraud, corruption or misconduct. "We have the dubious honour here in WA of the largest known public sector fraud with Paul Whyte," she told ABC Radio Perth's Drive program. "He was the head of the housing authority within the Department of Communities, and so we saw through the Corruption and Crime Commission's hearings that land was identified as a way that you could settle gambling debts if someone was given the heads up — you know, 'buy this land because the government will be buying it in the future'. "And so we saw there a case where a seller got $260,000 profit just by, if you like, buying it in advance of a government purchase. "We wanted to see if there was any unreasonable growth in value, or properties selling too low, over a five-year period [at DevelopmentWA]. Ms Spencer said her office was able to identify a number of serious issues that meant DevelopmentWA was unable to demonstrate value for money had been achieved in all of the public land sales. "We found that one property sold for more than 50 per cent lower than its most recent valuation, with no formal rationale documented on the files, so the most recent valuation was $800,000 and then it was sold for $385,000," she said. "We found 50 per cent of 1,100 properties under a regional stimulus program, during the audit period, didn't demonstrate compliance with approved pricing methods. "We've got a case study of a piece of land that's four times larger than the lot next door drop to the same price with no justification why." Much of the detail in the report highlights issues with appropriate documentation and the following of proper processes, which Ms Spencer said led her to the conclusion that fraud could have been taking place. "If you look at it like Swiss cheese, that you get too many holes and gaps in process and people not doing their job reviewing what's being done by the staff around them and you line up those holes, then you can get things getting through," she said. "So absolutely there could have been fraud within this period." Ms Spencer stressed the importance of DevelopmentWA, and those who work for it, understanding why following appropriate processes was so important. "What you have to understand in this environment is there are commercial interests here … third parties that DevelopmentWA interacts with, they are going to want to sell property for the highest value or buy property from government for the lowest value," she said. "And so every decision that is made by this agency to sell property needs to be properly documented, it needs to be on an approved basis." Another area of concern for the auditor-general was the lax way in which conflicts of interest, gifts and benefits had been handled at the government agency. "Being aware that people are going to seek to influence you and maintaining impartiality so you can have fair dealing with all developers, with all residential or industrial buyers of state-owned land is really important," she said. "We had 891 invitations where the information was incomplete to understand what was the benefit to DevelopmentWA, what was the actual management of that potential conflict of interest by the entity for those staff members." In both her audit and in talking on ABC Radio Perth, Ms Spencer highlighted that a change in leadership at the board level had led to a better culture within DevelopmentWA in recent times, but stressed those changes needed to continue. A number of recommendations were made in the audit, and DevelopmentWA responded by saying while it "believes it has solid foundations of well-defined policies and procedures, it acknowledges best-practice requires constant evolution and improvement". "DevelopmentWA's Board and Executive will build on these audit findings and continue to strive for the highest standards in governance and decision-making robustness," it finished. Ms Spencer tabled the Fraud Risks in Land Transactions by Development WA report in parliament on Wednesday and said her office would continue to have oversight. "This is the biggest audit that my office has done on this organisation. It doesn't normally get this level of scrutiny," she said. "But … we're going to continue to monitor the governance and the transactions and the transfers of state land to ensure that the public interest is served."
