Examiner to probe role of auditors

A SPECIAL examiner is expected to be appointed “within the next two weeks” by the Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board (CARB) to oversee the body’s planned investigation into the role played by leading accountancy firm Ernst & Young in the directors’ loans controversy at Anglo Irish Bank.

The CARB said earlier this month that it was planning an investigation around the practice of “hiding” the loans with the Irish Nationwide Building Society. It is thought the investigation will focus on the role played by Anglo’s auditor, Ernst & Young, not KPMG, which audits Irish Nationwide’s accounts.

The appointment of a neutral special investigator was deemed necessary. Once the investigation gets under way, it is thought the probe will run for months rather than years.