Swiss-based London-listed commodity trading and mining group Ferrexpo has appointed Graeme Dacomb as an independent non-executive director chairing the Audit Committee. Dacomb will also be a member of the Independent Review Committee which is looking into matters relating to Blooming Land.
Dacomb was a partner at Ernst and Young (EY) for 26 years where, for his last 12 years, he was a lead partner in the extractive industry. In addition to audit services, he provided critical advice to clients on corporate governance structures, risk management, acquisitions, disposals and financial systems and controls. From 2011 to 2018, he was a member of the Financial Reporting Review Panel.
Steve Lucas, Chairman of Ferrexpo, said: "The Independent Review into how Ferrexpo’s donations to a third party charity in Ukraine [Blooming Land] were used remains ongoing. The company will make an announcement to shareholders when the Independent Review Committee completes its work. To date, after a significant amount of work on the part of our forensic accountants and legal advisors, there has been no conclusive evidence of any wrongdoing.
Ferrexpo is also in the process of appointing a new auditor, a task that will now be overseen by Dacomb. Deloitte had resigned as the firm’s auditor in April following the discovery of discrepancies in Ferrexpo’s accounts in February.
In Deloitte's view the company delayed in commencing its independent review into the donations to Blooming Land. Ferrexpo disputes this believes it initiated the formal independent review at the appropriate time.
