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The US Securities and Exchange Commission has shut down the auditor of Donald Trump’s social media company, accusing it of “massive fraud”.
The US regulator said the firm, BF Borgers, and its founder, Ben Borgers, were responsible for “one of the largest wholesale failures by gatekeepers in our financial markets”.
Borgers, one of the most prolific auditors of US public companies, was charged on Friday with falsely representing to clients that the firm’s work would comply with US standards, and fabricating audit documentation.
Without admitting or denying the SEC’s findings, the firm has agreed to pay a $12mn penalty and Ben Borgers to pay $2mn.
Borgers has expanded rapidly to become auditor to hundreds of small- and microcap companies — including the former US president’s Trump Media & Technology Group — but the SEC said that three-quarters of its audits were faulty.
The agency said it was stepping in to permanently close what it called a “massive fraud” and “sham audit mill”.
Additional reporting by Jennifer Hughes
This is a developing story
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