DE4CC0DE-5FC3-4494-BCBF-4D50B00366B5

Steinhoff's Dutch Shareholders File Lawsuit Against Deloitte

By Publications Checkout
Share this article
Steinhoff's Dutch Shareholders File Lawsuit Against Deloitte

On Wednesday, Dutch shareholders filed a lawsuit against Deloitte, seeking damages for alleged failures in the accounting firm's vetting of the books of retailer Steinhoff International NV, said the Netherlands' association of retail investors.

Steinhoff, which expanded from a small local furniture retailer in South Africa into an international group, reported holes in its accounts six months ago, sending its shares tumbling and leaving it scrambling to pay its debts.

The association said that it had filed a suit against Deloitte at the District Court of Rotterdam.

Deloitte was not immediately available to comment.

Accounting Irregularities

The case is the Dutch legal equivalent of a class action suit, under which it will try to hold the company, its directors, accountants, and possibly the banks that assisted in its stock market listing responsible for damages.

ADVERTISEMENT

Shares in Steinhoff lost more than €13 billion in market value after the accounting irregularities surfaced in December.

On Tuesday, its creditors agreed to give it more time to restructure €9 billion in debt. Holders of €2.7 billion in three convertible bonds backed a debt standstill agreement, the company said.

The South African retailer is listed in Johannesburg and Frankfurt, but its parent company is incorporated in the Netherlands.

The retail shareholders association, known as VEB, has 42,000 members.

News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.

Get the week's top grocery retail news

The most important stories from European grocery retail direct to your inbox every Thursday

Processing your request...

Thanks! please check your email to confirm your subscription.

By signing up you are agreeing to our terms & conditions and privacy policy. You can unsubscribe at any time.