Shares in Wirecard Plunge as €1.9B Goes Missing

Beleaguered German fintech Wirecard continues to struggle with allegations of accounting impropriety; auditors have been unable to find 1.9 billion euros in cash and there was evidence that “spurious balance confirmations” had been provided; shares in the publicly traded payments company plunged 66% on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange today; they have delayed their annual report for the fourth time; at one time the company was valued at €24.6 billion but is now worth around €6.7 billion; according to a Wirecard statement, “EY told Wirecard that their results will require additional audits after two unnamed Asian banks that have been managing the company’s escrow were unable to find accounts with about 1.9 billion euros in funds”. Fortune

  • Peter Renton

    Peter Renton is the chairman and co-founder of Fintech Nexus, the world’s largest digital media company focused on fintech. Peter has been writing about fintech since 2010 and he is the author and creator of the Fintech One-on-One Podcast, the first and longest-running fintech interview series.