- Two directors – Abdulrahman Basaddiq and Bassam Hage – hand in notice as problems for the firm, which is under independent investigation, intensify
- The firm is suffering from liquidity problems as well as fears over some of its corporate governance arrangements
- Ernst & Young LLP (EY), auditors, also quit over concerns about “the composition of the Board of the Company, the adequacy of corporate governance concerns” and more
The beleaguered holding group for a number of cross border payments brands has suffered a further blow as the week got underway.
Finablr, which owns the foreign exchange provider Travelex plus a number of others, has been hit in recent weeks with problems relating to its liquidity and its ability to provide its normal services.
Now, the problems appear to be getting worse after two directors quit their posts.
The two, Abdulrahman Basaddiq and Bassam Hage, quit late on 27th March 2020 – which was last Friday.
The news was made public via an announcement on the London Stock Exchange this morning (Monday).
One of the directors went further with his criticism, releasing a clear public statement in a portion of his resignation letter.
”I wish to make it clear that I had no knowledge concerning the matters which are the subject of an independent investigation, including the use of cheques, referred to in the Company's announcement of 16 March 2020”, said Basaddiq.
The firm revealed earlier in March that it was appointing professionals in relation to potential insolvency.
The public listing of its shares has also been suspended at the firm’s own request.
It is understood that the company is undergoing significant liquidity problems, and that it is struggling to agree to finance deals for the long term.
It has had to suspend some of its normal activities, including some payment processing options.
The firm, which describes itself as “a global platform for Payments and Foreign Exchange solutions”, is a well-known one.
It operates brands such as Travelex – a foreign exchange bureau brand which is a fixture at British airports.
In a further blow, the firm’s auditors – Ernst and Young LLC (EY) – revealed that it had quit it's auditing post over a number of related concerns.
EY said it was concerned about the “adequacy” of some governance arrangements at Finablr, while it was also worried about debt.
EY revealed that it also had “concerns arising out of recent events at the Company and NMC Health plc”, they said.
Additionally, Ernst and Young LLC worried about: “the composition of the Board of the Company, the adequacy of corporate governance concerns and the recent issues that have caused the Company to commission an independent review of the Company’s financial arrangements, including of related party transactions and on and off-balance-sheet debt”.
These are strange times for firms in the international money transfer world.
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