With their refusal to confirm the annual figures of the real estate group Adler Group, the responsible auditors from KPMG also give themselves a bad report.
The fact that forensic experts, also from KPMG, combed through the Adler balance sheet as part of an extraordinary special audit in addition to the annual balance sheet audit hardly saves the auditor's honor.
Because the pressure to investigate questions of doubt with regard to Adler did not come from the auditors.
Instead, serious allegations from an external critic got the ball rolling.
It was the speculator Fraser Perring, who had already demonstrated a keen nose for balance sheet problems in the Wirecard scandal.
The Wirecard affair was also exposed due to the persistence of external critics, while the auditors warned shareholders and creditors too late.
In view of the deep price slumps in Adler's shares and bonds, the question arises again of the value of annual balance sheet reviews if they fail as an early warning system.