SERBA Dinamik Holdings Bhd is taking every possible measure to regain its footing as the company aspires to end a turbulent 2021 on a high note.

Head honcho of the global integrated oil & gas (O&G) outfit Datuk Dr Mohd Abdul Karim Abdullah has not given up the battle “to right the wrong” after the company he founded in 1997 has to lock horns with former external auditor KPMG PLT over accounting discrepancies that Serba Dinamik claimed has already been addressed.

In an interview with news portal Free Malaysia Today (FMT), the Serba Dinamik group managing director/CEO said the company is “well and back on track” with its suit against KPMG running parallel with efforts to restore the confidence of its stakeholders.

He further attributed the quick action to bring three new independent non-executive directors (INEDs) on board to review the audit issues in mid-June as key in addressing the matter (however, one of the INEDs, Masleena Zaid, had resigned on June 24 alongside four other INEDs who cited differences in opinion with the board’s decisions as the reason for their departure).

“We reviewed their findings and we agreed that KPMG’s actions were unjustified, hence the lawsuit. As you know, some did not agree with the move and resigned,” Abdul Karim told FMT. “But we stand by our decision to take KPMG to court.”

Abdul Karim further noted that Serba Dinamik has also appointed Ernst & Young Consulting Sdn Bhd (EY), one of the Big-Four auditing firms, to perform a special independent review of the issues raised by KPMG.

He also disputed claims that Bursa Malaysia had forced his company to appoint EY, saying the company had always wanted to appoint EY. “Initially, EY declined because KPMG refused to give them access to their audit findings, but we managed to get Bursa’s assistance to resolve the matter,” he clarified.

With regard to Serba Dinamik’s recent appointment of Nexia SSY PLT as KPMG’s replacement, Abdul Karim told FMT:

“We don’t have anything to hide, that’s why we’ve been so quick to bring in another auditor to look over our accounts. We just want to move past this and get back to business.

“We are in close contact with our clients and banks, updating them on what we’re doing and reassuring them that all is okay. The ship is steady and we are moving forward.”

At 10.27am, Serba Dinamik was up 0.5 sen or 1.23% with 30.12 million shares traded, thus valuing the company at RM1.53 bil. – Aug 4, 2021

https://focusmalaysia.my/serba-takes-impending-challenges-in-stride-re-building-future-is-key/