Britain’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) announced on Tuesday that it has opened an investigation into the audit conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) of WH Smith for the financial year that ended in August 2024.
The regulator said its enforcement division will carry out the review under the FRC’s audit enforcement procedure. No further details were provided by the FRC in its announcement about the scope or timetable of the probe.
Separately, WH Smith has been the subject of an ongoing review by the Financial Conduct Authority. That FCA investigation was launched in December and is focused on potential breaches of listing and disclosure rules, according to prior disclosures.
A spokesperson for PwC responded to the FRC announcement by saying the firm will fully cooperate with the regulator’s investigation.
Summary of current status:
- The FRC has commenced an enforcement investigation into PwC’s audit of WH Smith for the year ended August 2024.
- The FRC enforcement division will run the probe under its audit enforcement procedure.
- WH Smith remains under a separate FCA inquiry that began in December into possible listing and disclosure rule breaches.
- PwC has indicated it will cooperate with the FRC investigation.
At this stage the public statements contain limited detail on the specific issues under review by either regulator. The FRC announcement confirms only that the enforcement division will lead the audit-focused inquiry and does not set out any findings or allegations.
This development adds an additional regulatory review alongside the FCA's ongoing probe. Both matters relate to the company and its audited financial reporting, but the regulators operate under different mandates and procedures.
Further updates will depend on disclosures from the FRC, the FCA or the parties involved. The FRC’s use of its audit enforcement procedure indicates the matter will be considered within its established framework for examining audit work.