The meltdown of Steinhoff International, amid allegations of mass accounting fraud, has again called into question the health of the auditing profession in South Africa. The retailer this week lost more than R100-billion in market value, following the resignation of its CEO Markus Jooste, suspected of being party to the financial irregularities at the company. The events were initiated when Steinhoff's auditor, Deloitte, raised questions and would not sign off the company's financials. While Deloitte may be praised for ringing the alarm, it is not yet clear whether it should have acted sooner. If found to have acted irresponsibly, Deloitte could join the ranks of disgraced auditing firm KPMG and global consultancy McKinsey, both dragged into scandals over their dealings with Gupta-linked companies and embattled state-owned enterprises. To have another auditing firm's integrity called into question would not bode well for the profession or the economy, said Tim London, of the Univers...
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