December 14, 2011

Olympus submits earnings to try to avoid delisting

Japan's scandal-hit camera maker Olympus has filed revised earnings reports to try to avoid being delisted from the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
The firm filed its reports hours before a deadline passed which would have seen it automatically delisted.
Olympus was asked to refile its earnings because of deceptions and accounting irregularities.
In November Olympus admitted that it had been hiding losses of $1.5bn (£968m) going back almost two decades.
The company could still potentially be delisted by the Tokyo exchange because of the accounting scandal.
The deception came to light when former president and chief executive Michael Woodford challenged payments at the company.
Elaborate deception
Mr Woodford was fired in October after raising doubts about massive fees paid in the purchase of British medical equipment maker Gyrus Group in 2008.
He returned to Japan this week to meet investors to try and head a turnaround at the company.
Olympus has seen its fortunes slide after it fired Mr Woodford.
The ensuing investigation caused Olympus shares to plunge and forced its chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa to step down.
In refilling its earnings, Olympus sought to reassure investors, saying that its assets exceeded its liabilities in each of the financial years dating back to 2002/03.
No one has yet been charged in the scandal.
Olympus has said several top executives were involved in the scheme and has promised to investigate former and current executives and auditors, and to pursue possible criminal charges.
Fees for financial advice and acquisitions were part of an elaborate deception to keep the massive losses off the company's books.

No comments:

Post a Comment