- Ledger Lowdown
- Posts
- The accountant problem no one wants
The accountant problem no one wants
just added the borders
Hope you all had a great long Fourth of July weekend.
I share the 4-5 most important accounting that actually matter. I scroll so you don’t have to.
So grab your coffee, take a quick break, and lets catch up.
Today’s Ledger:
An accountant allegedly stole $200K from a client.
Forvis Mazars got fined over a weak audit.
Most Americans think they’re alone on climate change.
WTF of the Day🤯
He Trusted His Accountant. Then $200K Went Missing.
Here’s a small business nightmare. A Westchester accountant allegedly got access to a plumbing company’s books, then used that access to write about $200,000 in checks to himself. His name is Carmine Disanto. Prosecutors say he was working as a consultant when the money went missing. His wife, Patricia Kruse Disanto, is also facing charges because prosecutors say both of them failed to file New York state tax returns for several years.
If one adviser can access the bank account, write checks, and avoid real review, the business is running on vibes. That works until it does not. Split duties. Review bank activity. Limit payment authority. Even the person you trust most should still have someone checking the drawer.
What’s poppin in accounting🍿
Forvis Mazars Got In Trouble For Missing The Scary Stuff
Forvis Mazars got fined about $771,000 because regulators said its audit work was weak in the places that matter most. The firm audited Studio Retail Group. About eight months later, that company collapsed. That does not prove the audit caused the collapse. But it does make the audit look a lot more important. Regulators said the weak spots included expected credit losses, and financial services income. In normal English, those are the areas where auditors are supposed to ask the hardest questions.
The audit partner was fined about $44,600 too. The real story is that auditors get paid to be skeptical when the numbers get uncomfortable. If a company says it can keep going, the auditor has to test that. If a company says future losses are manageable, the auditor has to push on that too. A clean audit file should not just tell the story management wants. It should prove the hard parts were actually challenged.
Weekly Trend Chart 📊
Most Americans Think They’re Alone On Climate Change
More than half of Americans say climate change is a serious threat. But only 10% think other Americans feel the same way. So millions of people are sitting around thinking, “Am I the only one seeing this?” the U.S. has a 41-point gap between what people believe privately and what they think the rest of the country believes. Portugal had the biggest gap. Two-thirds of people there said climate change is a very serious threat, but only 24% thought their neighbors agreed.
That gap is a big deal because people are cowards in groups. If they think nobody else cares, they stay quiet. Then politicians feel no pressure. Companies move slowly. And the whole problem looks smaller than it is. The funniest part is the timing. London Climate Action Week, one of Europe’s biggest climate events, had to postpone panels because London hit 93 degrees. That is like a fire safety conference getting canceled because the building is on fire.
Meme of the Day😂
😂