Byju’s: Report on audit at Byju’s soon: ICAI Chief

The Financial Reporting Review Board (FRRB) of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) will soon submit its report on the standards and processes followed by the auditor of edtech major Byju’s, ICAI’s new president Ranjeet Kumar Agarwal told ET on Wednesday. The report by the FRRB, which looks at misreporting in financial reporting, will form the basis of the institute’s next course of action in this case, said Agarwal, who took over as the ICAI President on February 12.

Agarwal said: “We have a three-tier structure–technical review; review by the group; and then review by the board. If there is gross negligence (by the auditor), the matter goes to the disciplinary committee. If it’s not, we usually issue an advisory.” The crisis at Byju’s had flared up following the resignation of three directors and the auditor-Deloittee–over an inordinate delay in the announcement of financial results, among others.

Reciprocity in FTA

Agarwal said the ICAI has conveyed to the commerce ministry its support for any proposal that would allow chartered accountants from the UK and Canada to practise in India strictly on a reciprocal basis under the free trade agreements that are being hammered out with these two countries.

SOPs for probe

The ICAI is in talks with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs for bringing out a sort of standard operating procedure or guidelines for investigating agencies on how to treat chartered accountants in cases where they are not involved but rather framed. The institute has submitted its inputs with the MCA, he said.

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