LONDON - Tesco’s UK arm to pay £129m fine over accounting scandal. Tesco’s UK arm is set to pay a £129m penalty over a historic accounting scandal and put £85m in a scheme to compensate investors. The United Kingdom supermarket group said its subsidiary Tesco Stores said it had entered into a “deferred prosecution agreement” with the Serious Fraud Office to pay the penalty of £129m.
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The fine relates to false accounting at Tesco Stores in 2014 and will mean the company will avoid prosecution after a two-year investigation.
In September 2014, Tesco said it misstated profits during the first half of that year, with the discrepancy eventually growing to £326m. The retailer went on to report a £6.3bn loss in 2015, one of the biggest in British corporate history.
On Tuesday, the company said it had agreed with the Financial Conduct Authority to set up a compensation scheme for shareholders and bondholders who bought assets between August 29 and September 19 in 2014. (Financial Times)
