California Wow Allegedly Siphoned Bt1.6 Billion Overseas

Afrer a little more investigation it looks as if we talking about straight fraud here, if AMLO is to be believed. AMLO is investigating 10 people to do with the overseas transfers and says the largest transfer of B 495 million took place in 2010. I have dug up the 2010 annual report (attached) and there is nothing in the accounts suggestive of an overseas payment of that size or anything close. Nothing is disclosed about any royalty or licence fees paid abroad, just the rights to use the California Wow Experience trademark generously provided free of charge by Levine. It was a relatively small business and sales for the year were only B 1 billion . Thus, if AMLO's information is correct, siphoning off an amount equivalent to nearly half the year's sales revenue would have involved a fraud of a monumental nature with all levels of financial management, the audit committee and the company's auditors PWC complicit in the fraud. In that year Major was still a larger shareholder than Levine and his group, benefiting hugely from rental income paid by CAWOW and Major's Vichai was an non-executive director.

Realistically I would expect that the company overstated the expenses of the business systematically and perhaps also understated the sales. Therefore the fraud is not apparent in the accounts which must be pure fiction, happily audited by PWC year after year with only mild qualifications from the bone headed auditor. Probably the amount of B 495 remitted in 2010 was accumulated in 2009 and perhaps other prior years as well as 2010, given its large size relative to the business, stashed away in non-company accounts and remitted in 2010 when they knew the writing was on the wall.

It will be interesting to see how far AMLO pushes this. I think Major would like it to disappear. Even if they were not involved in fraud they look bad being the major shareholder and on the board at the time and benefiting substantially from the business through related party transactions. Therefore, I would guess that it will indeed disappear.

Afrer a little more investigation it looks as if we talking about straight fraud here, if AMLO is to be believed. AMLO is investigating 10 people to do with the overseas transfers and says the largest transfer of B 495 million took place in 2010. I have dug up the 2010 annual report (attached) and there is nothing in the accounts suggestive of an overseas payment of that size or anything close. Nothing is disclosed about any royalty or licence fees paid abroad, just the rights to use the California Wow Experience trademark generously provided free of charge by Levine. It was a relatively small business and sales for the year were only B 1 billion . Thus, if AMLO's information is correct, siphoning off an amount equivalent to nearly half the year's sales revenue would have involved a fraud of a monumental nature with all levels of financial management, the audit committee and the company's auditors PWC complicit in the fraud. In that year Major was still a larger shareholder than Levine and his group, benefiting hugely from rental income paid by CAWOW and Major's Vichai was an non-executive director.

Realistically I would expect that the company overstated the expenses of the business systematically and perhaps also understated the sales. Therefore the fraud is not apparent in the accounts which must be pure fiction, happily audited by PWC year after year with only mild qualifications from the bone headed auditor. Probably the amount of B 495 remitted in 2010 was accumulated in 2009 and perhaps other prior years as well as 2010, given its large size relative to the business, stashed away in non-company accounts and remitted in 2010 when they knew the writing was on the wall.

It will be interesting to see how far AMLO pushes this. I think Major would like it to disappear. Even if they were not involved in fraud they look bad being the major shareholder and on the board at the time and benefiting substantially from the business through related party transactions. Therefore, I would guess that it will indeed disappear.

All auditors can be bought. WorldCom,Enron and so many examples of it, even more son in the motherload of corruption .

You think California wow of bangkok Thailand can but delloite?

Yes, D&T!