IRB Brasil Re pursues criminal complaint in accounting irregularities case

Brazil's major reinsurer IRB Brasil Re has filed a criminal complaint to Rio de Janeiro’s Federal Public Prosecutor regarding the  accounting irregularitie s found in the company's financial statements that led to widespread scrutiny and forensic investigation.

Earlier in June, the reinsurer admitted that an independent investigation carried out by KPMG Assessores and Felsberg Advogados regarding the disclosure of information about the company's shareholder base, found irregularities of approximately R$60 million ($11 million) in bonus payments and the amount of shares offered in its February and March 2020 share repurchase programmes.

IRB said in Aug. 17 statement that the accounting deviations and manipulations, among other irregularities, identified by the internal and forensic investigations led to the re-filing of the financial statements for the fiscal year of 2019.

IRB had maintained that "all of these operations were carried out without the Board of Directors’ knowledge". And, that those officers responsible for all these irregularities are no longer part of the company's staff. IRB had stated that they practiced these irregularities "on an individual basis, outside their mandates and their regular management powers".