Wirecard says missing billions never existed

Fintech Wirecard has said the some $2.1 billion it booked into its accounts likely never existed.

Patricia Uhlig, Karen Lema, and John O’Donnell reported the news for Reuters:

Wirecard said on Monday that 1.9 billion euros ($2.1 billion) it had booked in its accounts likely never existed, a black hole that threatens to engulf the payments company and tarnish the reputation of Germany’s financial watchdog.

The one-time investor darling is holding emergency talks with its banks, which are owed roughly 1.75 billion euros, to avert a looming cash crunch triggered by the missing money.

Charles Riley from CNN wrote:

Shares in Wirecard (WCAGY) plunged in early trading on Monday. The stock has lost more than 85% over three trading sessions — wiping out $12.5 billion in market value — since EY, its auditor refused to sign off the company’s accounts.

On Monday, the company withdrew its preliminary results for 2019, the first quarter of 2020 and its profit forecast for 2020. It warned that financial results from previous years may also be affected.

CNBC’s Ryan Browne reported:

The search for the missing cash appeared to hit a dead-end after two Asian banks alleged to be holding the missing cash — the Philippines’ BDO and BPI —  both denied having Wirecard as a client. Further compounding those fears, the Philippines’ central bank said Sunday that the money hadn’t even entered the country’s financial system.

“The initial report is that no money entered the Philippines,” Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said Sunday, adding that the names of BDO and BPI were used “in an attempt to cover the perpetrators’ track.”