Investment Intermediaries Act, 1995

Power to require a second audit.

35.—(1) If, on the basis of the information obtained through an audit, a supervisory authority has a real and substantial concern about the audited accounts of an authorised investment business firm, the supervisory authority may direct an authorised investment business firm to submit for examination by a person appointed by the supervisory authority any or all of the following, namely—

(a) any accounts on which the auditor of that authorised investment business firm has reported or any information which has been verified by that auditor, or

(b) any information as is specified in the direction,

and the person making the examination shall report his conclusions to the supervisory authority.

(2) The person carrying out an examination under this section shall have all the powers that are available to an auditor under this Act and under the Companies Acts and it shall be the duty of the auditor of an authorised investment business firm to afford that person all such assistance as he may require.

(3) Where a report made under this section relates to accounts which under any enactment are required to be sent to, or made available for inspection by, any person or to be delivered for registration, the report, or any part of it (or a note that such a report has been made) may be similarly sent, made available or delivered by the supervisory authority.

(4) An officer or employee of an authorised investment business firm or of an associated or related undertaking who knowingly or recklessly makes a statement to a person appointed under this section that is false or misleading or deceptive in a material particular shall be guilty of an offence.

(5) If any officer, employee, shareholder or agent of an authorised investment business firm or associated undertaking or related undertaking refuses to produce to the person appointed under this section any book or document which it is his duty under this section to produce, refuses to attend before the person appointed under this section when required to do so, or refuses to answer any question put to him by the person appointed under this section with respect to the affairs of an authorised investment business firm or associated undertaking or related undertaking, the person appointed under this section may certify the refusal under his hand to the Court and the Court may thereupon inquire into the case and, after hearing any witnesses who may be produced against or on behalf of the officer, employee, shareholder or agent of the authorised investment business firm or associated or related undertaking and any statement which may be offered in defence, make any order or issue a direction as it thinks fit including a direction to the person concerned to attend or re-attend before the person appointed under this section or produce particular books or documents or answer a particular question put to him by the person appointed under this section, or a direction that the person concerned need not produce a particular book or document or answer a particular question put to him by the person appointed under this section.

(6) The expenses of and incidental to an examination under this section shall be defrayed in the first instance by the supervisory authority instigating the examination.