CMVM on audit of Inapa: “The supervisor cannot remain indifferent to these matters”

Inapa is insolvent, as the court ruled this summer, after the paper distributor was unable to meet a financing need at its German subsidiary. There was nothing publicly known that would make this prediction and the audit carried out by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on the 2023 accounts did not anticipate it either. The Securities Market Commission (CMVM) is investigating what happened.

In a meeting with journalists about the audit exercise, held this Wednesday, September 25th, the CMVM administrator responsible for this responsibility, José Miguel Almeida, did not want to specify what is at stake, but admitted that work is in progress.

“We don’t talk about concrete situations. All facts that occur in the market are, naturally, depending on their relevance, susceptible to analysis by the CMVM in the various and multiple [áreas]. It is natural that when faced with situations of great importance, with great impact, the supervisor cannot remain indifferent to these matters”, replied José Miguel Almeida.

The head of the CMVM did not want to say much more, but referred to the Luanda Leaks, a case in which the auditors’ certifications made to companies involved in the scandal that had Isabel dos Santos as the protagonist were verified: “When it was the Luanda Leaks, the CMVM he did not fail to carry out the analysis he had to carry out”.

In this work, the supervisor responsible for the auditors will have to understand whether all procedures have been followed and all information requested for their pronouncement.

Inapa reported a loss of 8 million euros in 2023. In the certification carried out, PwC states the work done, and how it verified it, without leaving a warning, neither in the form of emphasis nor in the form of reservation. The Executive Committee that was in office at the end of the year, led by Frederico Lupi, resigned after realizing that it did not have shareholder support from Parpública (and the Ministry of Finance), a refusal that led to insolvency.

At this moment, the insolvency of the paper distributor’s holding company continues, in which there is already a report presented by the administrator, Bruno da Costa Pereira, and in which it has already become clear that the existing offers for its assets will result in its dismemberment.

Also this Wednesday, the insolvency administrator announced that Japan Pulp and Paper (JPP) presented an offer for the paper distribution unit in France for 25 million euros (subject to conditions and may include Portugal, the Shared Services Center and brands). There will now be 30 days of exclusive negotiations.