Stellenbosch, South Africa – Steinhoff International has postponed a meeting with its creditors in London, and has appointed forensic accountants, following the resignation of CEO Markus Joost.
The company said its practice is to meet privately with a group of its bankers, and update them on the annual report and the group’s European budget for the following year.
The meeting was scheduled to take place in London on 11 December and has been postponed to 19 December, following the delay to the publication of its annual report.
The company had announced previously that it wants to reschedule some of its debt to help improve cash flow, and that it has received offers for some non-core assets.
Separately, Steinhoff has formed a board sub-committee of independent non-executive directors to strengthen its internal management. PwC has been appointed as forensic investigators, and the board’s audit committee is working with statutory auditors Deloitte ‘to facilitate the release of our audited financial statements’.
‘Trading in the underlying business around the world continues uninterrupted in the pre-Christmas period,’ a company announcement said.
The group employs 130,000 people in 30 countries.
According to Forbes, which profiled Joost in 2015, at that time Steinhoff was the second-largest furniture retailer in Europe.
