JSE warns CS Holdings

By Iain Scott, ITWeb group consulting editor

Johannesburg, 20 Apr 2004

The JSE has warned CS Holdings (CSH) to submit financial statements by the end of the month or face having its listing suspended.

Acting CEO Dave Vink was unavailable this morning as he was in a meeting with auditors, but a source at the company says although CSH released its interim results in February, subsequent events have led it to draw up additional information.

The JSE requires companies to submit a complete set of financial statements within three months of the end of any financial period. The company source says the additional information should be published this week.

The results released in February contained restated figures for the year-earlier period. This sparked allegations that CS Holdings previously artificially boosted its profits by selling an asset for R18 million after acquiring it for R2.5 million and then reversed the sale after its financial results were published.

There were also allegations of a conflict of interest, relating to the involvement in the deal of then CEO Annette van der Laan`s ex-husband, Hans van der Laan.

Annette van der Laan resigned towards the end of February, citing negative publicity and the interests of the company. At the same time, the consultancy arrangement between CSH and Hans van der Laan`s company, Havadel, was terminated.