FARview #4 with Prof. dr. Philip Wallage and Prof. dr. Jan Bouwens (podcast in Dutch)

20 May 2020

Can a company deliver what it promises? Can a company still pay its suppliers? Can investors in the company be sure that their money will not be lost? These are all questions that are currently under discussion. There is also discussion about the role that the auditor can and should play in this. Jan Bouwens recently wrote an opinion piece on this subject for Accountant.nl. The gist of the story was that the financial sector (in particular) bears a major responsibility for determining which companies will continue to have access to cash. What agreements do companies make with governments, suppliers and banks about their access to cash? According to Bouwens, the auditor can help, for example by issuing an independent opinion each quarter on the financial position of the companies concerned. He discussed this with Philip Wallage. How does Wallage view the crisis and what is his opinion of Bouwens' proposals?

Click here for the rest of this discussion (opens in pdf).

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Philip Wallage is professor of auditing at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and the University of Amsterdam and a former partner of KPMG. Jan Bouwens is Professor of Accounting at the University of Amsterdam and Academic Board Member and Managing Director of the Foundation for Auditing Research.