Is another stock market crash around the corner?

Auditors are poised to raise the red flag over their clients’ accounts having been criticised for not being tough enough – and it’s making regulators very nervous, writes James Moore

Auditors have repeatedly been cast as the villains for failing to raise the alarm over companies like Carillion (EPA)

Is a fresh bout of bloodletting on the stock market just around the corner? Having been harshly, and justifiably, criticised for turning a blind eye to problems bubbling under the surface of some very big corporate names (Thomas Cook, Carillion, Patisserie Valerie, etc) it seems auditors are finally of a mind to get tough.

This means a large number of companies could end up with question marks applied to their accounts when they are published over the coming weeks and months. Think retailers classed as “non-essential” during the lockdown or those in the leisure and hospitality sectors.

Auditors could almost be justified in attaching a red warning light to any consumer-facing company.