The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has granted listed companies an extra two months to publish their audited financial statements. Currently, Plcs have four months from their financial year-ends to do so. But, amid the coronavirus crisis, many are having to “re-think and re-plan almost all aspects of their business and operations”. Thus, “companies and auditors should be granted time”.
The FCA noted that market participants should not draw undue negative inferences when companies do opt to make use of the additional period given to them to report on their numbers – arguing that this would, in multiple instances, be a sensible decision in such unprecedented circumstances.
The new measure unveiled by the FCA forms part of a broader set of actions from the watchdog and its fellow regulators the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to facilitate the continued flow of information to investors and to “support the continued functioning of the UK’s capital markets”.
On 21 March – a few days prior to its latest announcement – the FCA had asked that all public entities delay the release of their full-year figures by at least two weeks. A significant number of companies have complied with this request – and it seems highly likely that several more will make use of the prolonged moratorium given to them in order to offer up relevant, real-time analysis of how the Covid-19 outbreak is impacting their processes and performance. In these rapidly changing times, what is said today may no longer be applicable next week.
