Varengold completes 2022 audit and sets AGM date
Varengold Bank has received the audit certificate for its 2022 annual financial statements, and has rescheduled last year’s delayed annual general meeting (AGM).
The AGM was originally intended to take place on 30 August 2023. It will now be held on 13 August 2024.
Following the completion of the audit, Varengold confirmed that it earned €25.4m (£21.5m) from ordinary business activities in 2022 – an increase of 18.9 per cent on the previous year. When taking into account income taxes, fines and other taxes, the net profit for the year totalled €9.1m, compared with €17.2m in 2021.
Read more: Varengold raises earnings forecast despite audit woes
The Hamburg-based bank has been embroiled in a prolonged audit of its 2022 accounts for more than a year, after the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) flagged possible compliance violations relating to Varengold’s dealings with Iran.
As a result of the audit and compliance probe, Varengold slashed its profit guidance for 2023, cancelled its dividend, and laid off 22 per cent of its staff.
“The events and developments in 2023 had a significant impact on the course of the audit of the annual financial statements for the 2022 financial year,” said Varengold’s management board members Dr. Bernhard Fuhrmann and Frank Otten.
Read more: Varengold hits out at “grossly misleading media coverage” amid compliance probe
“Due to the ongoing special audit of the business operations…and the resulting partial results, the necessary audit procedures…could only be completed with a significant delay.
“Among other things, additional positive and negative value-enhancing factors had to be considered in the further course of 2023 and 2024 when preparing the financial statements.”
Earlier this year, the bank reported that during the first quarter of 2024, it generated net income of €14.1m and preliminary earnings before taxes of €5.9m. In an announcement, the board said that it was “convinced that the bank has taken the right measures to counter the effects of last year’s special audit”.
The 2022 audit was carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). PwC has now begun the audit of the 2023 annual financial statements, which Varengold expect to release during the fourth quarter of 2024.
Read more: Varengold has “satisfactory start” to 2024 as special audit continues
