According to the data, as of April 10, 11 companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen had issued non-standard opinions on their financial reports, including unqualified opinions and qualified opinions with emphasized items. Referring to the financial statements of these 11 companies, we can see that the financial disputes caused by litigation, the inability to obtain part of the audit materials and the doubt of the ability of going concern are the main reasons for the non-standard annual reports of these companies.
Kuang Yuqing, founder of lens company, introduced in an interview with the reporter of Securities Daily that the financial risk of non-standard listed companies is relatively large, and the audit institutions will issue corresponding non-standard opinions on matters that are considered to be problematic or uncertain, which is also a way for them to pass on their own risks.
Among the 11 non-standard listed companies, the status of some listed companies makes the audit institutions “speechless”.
For example, Great Wall International Acg Co.Ltd(000835) ‘s audit institution believes that the company’s personnel are seriously lost and its business is basically at a standstill; Due to overdue debts and other matters, the company involved in many lawsuits, and some bank accounts and equity of some subsidiaries were frozen by justice; The company’s management plans to take measures to improve the company’s operating and financial conditions, but there are still significant uncertainties in the company’s sustainable operation.
The audit institution said, “we are unable to obtain sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to judge whether the company’s financial statements are appropriate based on the assumption of going concern; we are unable to obtain sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to confirm the possible impact of litigation matters on the company’s financial statements; we are unable to confirm the accuracy of the presentation of the company’s financial statements and the statement items related to the above letter.”
Similar to Great Wall International Acg Co.Ltd(000835) and Chunghsin Technology Group Co.Ltd(603996) , the audit institution failed to obtain sufficient evidence to prove the accuracy, completeness and authenticity of the relevant amount on the issue of the occupation of funds by related parties. Moreover, due to the major defects of internal control, the company is unable to provide a number of important financial information, and the audit institution is unable to implement the necessary audit procedures such as effective confirmation and inspection to judge whether there is a risk of material misstatement in the relevant financial statement items, which cover the balance sheet and income statement, mainly including accounts receivable, prepayments, other accounts receivable, fixed assets, accounts payable Credit impairment loss and asset impairment loss have a significant and extensive impact on financial statements. “As of the date of approval of the financial statements, we were unable to obtain sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to judge whether there were material misstatements in the relevant financial statements, whether it was necessary to make adjustments or put forward adjustment suggestions, and whether the amount to be adjusted could not be determined.” The auditor said.
As the ability to continue as a going concern was questioned, after the release of the annual report, some companies immediately reminded investors that the company currently has the risk of terminating the listing.
Wang Zhibin, a lawyer from Shanghai Minglun law firm, told the reporter of Securities Daily that if the annual report is listed by non-standard companies, in addition to their own financial risks, investors will also pay attention to the due diligence of intermediaries. Since this year, the regulatory authorities have strengthened the supervision of the due diligence of intermediaries, and some intermediaries have therefore assumed greater legal responsibility. Under this background, in order to avoid their own business risks, audit institutions will be more “serious” in some accounting subjects.
At present, both regulatory authorities and judicial organs have significantly increased the responsibility identification and punishment of audit institutions. In the face of increasing professional risks, audit institutions will take some measures to isolate themselves from risks. “In theory, if the audit institution has emphasized some problems in the non-standard opinions, it is equivalent to making ‘exemption clauses’ for itself in these fields. However, if the company explodes in the end, whether the audit institution can completely get rid of its responsibilities depends on the specific situation.” Kuang Yuqing told the reporter of Securities Daily.
“It is a good thing to consolidate the responsibilities of all parties and let the third-party institution ‘gatekeeper’ play its due role, which plays a practical role in protecting investors.” Wang Zhibin said.
Some listed companies triggered the risk of delisting after being non-standard. In this regard, Wang Zhibin said, “delisting does not mean the exemption of relevant responsibilities. If the company has previously committed violations, even if delisting, investors can still pursue the responsibility of the company and relevant responsible subjects according to law.”
