Regulator probes Deloitte over Glencore accounts
On Wednesday morning, the accountancy regulator announced that it has launched an investigation into Deloitte over audits related to the FTSE 100 giant Glencore.
Glencore is one of the world’s largest commodity trading houses. Its operations span coal mining, energy trading and shipping, and it trades hundreds of billions of dollars in commodities every year through its trading and marketing arm.
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) commenced its probe into the statutory audits conducted by Deloitte of the financial statements of Glencore plc and Glencore Energy UK Limited for the financial years ended 31 December 2013 to 31 December 2020.
Glencore’s legal battles
Glencore has been at the heart of several regulatory investigations and legal battles.
Last year, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) charged five former Glencore employees with allegations of conspiring to make corrupt payments to benefit Glencore’s oil operations in West Africa.
In the same year, Glencore was ordered by the Swiss authorities to pay a fine and compensation totalling around £119m following a probe into the bribery of a Congolese public official by its business partner in 2011.
In 2022, a London judge ordered a UK subsidiary of Glencore to pay a total sum of £281m over an international bribery scandal in which its staff had paid almost $29m in bribes to officials in Africa.
The FRC said it opened a probe as Glencore has “been subject to investigations by government agencies into misconduct”.
The FRC’s investigation will include whether Deloitte gave sufficient consideration to the risk of non-compliance with laws and regulations.
The Big Four giant has been hit with four sanctions over the last five years, with fines (post-discount) totalling over £18.5m.
Commenting on the new investigation, a Deloitte UK spokesperson said: “We are committed to the highest standards of audit quality and will fully co-operate with the Financial Reporting Council.”