Stamp out frauds from financial sector: Experts

It is high time that a concerted effort be taken to eliminate fraud and revamp the country’s economy.

Fraud is a kind of criminal deception that leads to a huge loss of money in the financial sector and thus it remains one of the most problematic and unsolvable matters for businesses across the world since long.

The speakers said this at a webinar titled “Forensic Accounting and Audit” organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh (ICAB) on Sunday.

ICAB president Mahmudul Hasan Khusru FCA delivered the welcome speech while council member and former president AF Nesaruddin FCA presided over the webinar as the session chairman.

In his address, ACC Commissioner Md Mozammel Haque Khan said frauds have mainly occurred in the banking sector in the country.

“It varies widely in nature, character and method of perpetration,” he observed, saying management fraud is a type of fraud frequently committed by management staff of a reporting entity.

As management fraud is normally committed by persons in positions of trust, they have the authority to override internal control, Mozammel pointed out.

The discussants highlighted the role of auditor in examining records and financial statements and in forming an opinion on the financial statements.

The external auditors should consider the risk of material misstatements in financial statements, including those resulting from frauds or errors, they suggested, outlining that ICAB auditors are doing their best in this regard.

Putting importance on the role of internal auditor, the speakers said internal audit units need to be proactive in discharging their duties that can keep fraud in the banking industry at bay.

In his welcome speech, ICAB president Mahmudul Hasan Khusru FCA pointed out that a forensic accounting audit requires some unique protocol involving initial investigation, information reporting and a final litigation.

It is important to have an inquisitive mind-set, attention to details and also capacity to process large volumes of data alongside having a solid understanding of accounting principles and legal concepts, he argued.

Mahmudul called for a greater cooperation in policies from government, businesses, universities and communities for fighting corruption and boosting economic growth.

Executive Director of Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit Md Masud Biswas and Partner, Forensic Services of KPMG, Mustafa Surka, Mohammad Al Maruf Khan FCA, Partner, Howladar Yunus & Co. Chartered Accountants, and Hemal Modi, Partner, Sharp & Tannan Associates, Vadodara, Gujarat, India attended the programme.