Wirecard and Germany Both Shot the Messenger
Analysts, directors, regulators and auditors were for too long unwilling to listen to valid questions about how the fintech made money.
Markus Braun.
Photographer: Alex Kraus/Bloomberg
Less than a month ago, Wirecard AG told investors that it expected an “unqualified audit opinion” when its long-delayed annual results were finally published. The update that the German electronic-payments processor provided to the market on Thursday was about as far from unqualified as it’s possible to imagine.
Auditor Ernst & Young has been unable to obtain enough information to verify 1.9 billion euros ($2.1 billion) of the company’s cash balances, according to the Wirecard statement. Furthermore, there’s evidence that a third party tried to “deceive” the auditor. The annual report still hasn’t been published and, unless that’s quickly resolved, creditors might terminate 2 billion euros of loans to the company.