Tricorn swings to loss following accounting mishaps; seeks capital

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Tube manipulation specialist Tricorn swung to a loss for the 18-month period through September 2020 as expenses jumped and it experienced a'breakdown in the control and oversight' of its financial management.

The company also said its auditor had disclaimed an opinion on its financial results and that it was planning to raise capital.

Pre-tax losses for the 18-month period amounted to £7.7 million, compared to a profit for the 12 months through March 2019 of £0.95 million.

Tricon said it had changed its accounting reference date as a result of the impact of Covid-19.

Chief financial officer Michael Stock, hired in August, had conducted an internal review that brought accounting issues to light that were announced in November.

'The breakdown in the control and oversight of the finance function during the period is extremely disappointing,' chairman Andrew Moss said on Wednesday.

'The focus of the new team has been to implement robust controls over current financial reporting to ensure confidence in the results presented.'

'Despite significant work being done by the new finance team the legacy issues have resulted in the auditor disclaiming their opinion on the financial statements of the group and company for the period as it has not been possible to fully reconstruct the historic accounting records by the time we are due to report.'

'Notwithstanding the limitations relating to the accounting records to support the transactions the comments on the results throughout the annual report are our understanding of the results based on the financial reporting system in place and the work done by the finance team after the year end.'

Moss said that although Tricorn was currently operating within its borrowing facilities, those alone would not provide the necessary cash to make required investments.

'There are a number of funding options available to the group which are currently being considered by management,' he said. 'The group's bankers continue to remain supportive during this period.'

Tricorn said its UK and US facilities reopened and had remained open, from 20 April 2020 onwards, albeit with reduced staffing levels and employees continuing to work from home wherever possible.

Looking forward, Moss said customer demand was steadily improving, which was a welcome sign that the company was returning to pre-pandemic levels of production activity.