AUDITING AND ASSURANCE REPORT

By BOLAJI AUGUSTINE
Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 4
2.0 Approach .......................................................................................................................................... 5
3.0 Analysis and Interpretations.............................................................................................................. 6
3.1 Corporate Governance ...................................................................................................................... 6
3.2 Accounting and Internal Control Risks ............................................................................................. 9
3.3 Audit Risk and Evidence ................................................................................................................ 10
3.4 Audit Procedure .............................................................................................................................. 13
3.5 Audit Report and Analysis .............................................................................................................. 13
4.0 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 16
References ............................................................................................................................................. 17

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Executive Summary

There is a revolutionary change taking place globally as a result of emerging issues and
happening such as the most recent one being the Covid-19 pandemic that has impacted and
change the way individuals and businesses operates. To address these issues and minimize the
effect of business performance, corporate leaders need to devise to achieve its set objectives
by constantly evaluating their corporate governance systems.

Central to ensuring transparency and accountability in business and organisations is a system

good corporate governance. Precisely in the UK, publicly listed companies operating the in
country like other advanced countries are required by regulations to carry out annual statutory
audit by appointed auditors who will examine their book of accounts and express independent
opinion (Financial Reporting Council, 2018, UK Companies Act, 2006).

This report considers the annual report and account of Asos Plc for the 2021, the company’s
most recent financial statement in accordance with the requirements for the coursework. The
aim is to assess the core crisis factors; crisis management and response, workforce, operations and
supply chain, finance and liquidity, tax, trade and regulatory, strategy and brand as it affects the Asos
PLc business operations and ultimately, maximizing shareholders wealth.

To develop this report, the procedure adopted include inspection, confirmation, recalculations,
analytical review, and examination of available literature, especially the annual report and
accounts for 2021. Furthermore, the outcome of auditor’s walkthrough tests was critically
reviewed. Notwithstanding, findings revealed that the audit report are in compliance with
extant laws and regulations including the UK corporate governance code and Companies Act,
2006.

As an online business, key crisis factors faced by Asos Plc include its operations and supply
chain due to the effect of Covid-19 pandemic, workforce as result of changing nature of work
(the new normal), tax, trade and regulatory requirements as government continued to review
existing fiscal policies and tax laws.

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1.0 Introduction

No doubt, Covid-19 and its associated pandemic brought about fundamental changes in today’s
society and has impacted both individuals and business organisations globally. In order to
continue to conduct the affairs of the business appropriately toward achieving set corporate
goals in the face of current realities, business leaders are expected to regularly reassess their
governance approach, assurance procedures and other key measures to ensure business success
by maximizing the wealth of shareholders.

In the global business environment and particularly, the United Kingdom, business audit is
central to ensuring corporate transparency and accountability (See., United Kingdom Corporate
Governance Codes 2018; UK Company Act, 2006). The examination of accounts and records
by the auditor is meant to critically evaluate the financial health of the business in an effort to
form opinion as to whether the account examined present fairly the true state of affairs of the
business (Baku, 2009 and Arens et al, 2016). This became imperative in the business world
primarily to address issues that emanated as a result of the separation between corporate leaders
(directors) and the absentee owners (shareholders) with a view to enhance the stakeholder’s
confidence in the report (International Auditing and Assurance Board, 2020).

In specifics, audit involves a critical examination of the records and books of account of a
business to enable the auditor ascertain the authenticity, completeness, validity and accuracy
of entries in the books of account and the subsequent financial statements prepared internally
as this helps to minimize chances of misrepresentation, errors and existence of fraud.

By regulations, companies operating in the United Kingdom (UK) like other parts of the world
are required by law especially, publicly listed companies to have their accounts and business
records examined by an external auditor prior to publishing reports. Also, in accordance with
the laws, appointment and conduct of an audit need to comply with relevant provisions in terms
of specific roles, scope of audit and approach if set objectives must be achieved.

Holistically, standard audit passes through four key stages from engagement of auditor to
effectively and efficiently delivering audit result that is free from any form of interference,
influence and that meet set quality objective (Arens, 2016).

Firstly, auditor need to get familiarized with the auditee’s business environment and operations
with a view to deepening understanding including internal control, determining materiality
threshold, identifying signicant risks areas, reporting structure, developing plan and approach

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for the audit exercise. Secondly, the auditor needs to conduct tests of controls and transactions
(should outcome of control tests suggest weakness) in the auditee organisation and report
findings to management through a letter. Thirdly, the auditor is expected to critically evaluate
the possibility of misstatements in the reports, errors or fraud on the basis on control measures
existing in the organization.

Fourthly, the auditor leverage on technical audit tools and methods such as casting and
recasting, and other analytical procedures to conduct test of details of records in the books of
account with focus on items that are of material especially balances on the financial statements
to further provide assurance to users (See., Davis and Hay, 2012).

Lastly, this stage involves the auditor consolidating and documenting evidence, developing the
audit report and communicating to corporate leaders through the audit committee of the board
charged with supervision oversight.

This paper is prepared to crucially evaluate the business and audit and assurance of Assos in
the light of revolutionary changes in the business operating environment caused by Covid-19
and the associated effect on businesses around the world based on the company’s 2021 audit
report.

Specifically, emphasis will be placed on level of assurance provided in the report, ascertain
gaps or core crisis areas with a view to proffering solutions capable of improving level of
assurance and the overall integrity of the report. This has become vital in order to maximize
business revenue streams, meet and surpass stakeholders’ expectation in terms of performance
while raising assurance level in the face of crisis factors facing businesses globally.

As an online business, crisis factors faced by Assos involves its operations and supply chain,
workforce, tax, trade and regulatory requirements. It has become imperative for the
management of the company to objectively reassess the going concern status of the company
against the aforementioned risk factors as well as the level of uncertainty in the company
financial statement.

2.0 Approach
Generally, auditors are required to perform their work in a manner that will enable them obtain
sufficient and appropriate evidence to reach conclusion and form opinion as to whether
financial statement examined present fairly the state of affairs (International Auditing and

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Assurance Board (2020). Similarly, in gathering information for this report, the procedure
adopted is described below;

Desk review
In order to clearly understand the audit report as provided by PwC, the auditors to Asos Plc
for the period under review, I carried out a desk review of relevant literature including Asos
Plc Annual Report and Account for 2021.

Observation and Confirmation

To objectively assess the auditor’s report vis a viz management assertion with respect to
accounts and its key elements, I carried out observation and confirmation of material items
reported on the financial statement to also ensure compliance with standards and regulatory
requirements.

Analytical Procedures and Recalculation

To establish plausible relationships from the financial and non-financial information extracted
and analysed to draw insight and inferences. I also recomputed for completeness and accuracy
some of the figures reported by the auditors.

3.0 Analysis and Interpretations

The business of Asos’s as captured in the audit report is breakdown into key elements. This is
analysed along corporate governance, accounting and internal control risks, audit evidence and
risk, audit procedures and audit report and analysis as follows;

3.1 Corporate Governance

The concept of corporate governance has enjoyed long and rich history. According to Mason (1959)
the subject is traceable to the establishment of modern corporations, which date back to some
of the early business corporation such as East India Company and the Hudson’s Bay Company
the 16th and 17th centuries.

Historically, the 1609 dispute between the shareholders /investors and directors of the Dutch
East India Company was generally regarded as the world's first listed public company as well
as subsequent corporate scandals involving large companies such as Enron, Worldcom, BCCI
and others necessitated the need for good corporate governance system around the world. It
was popularized in the US and UK in the 1970s to strengthen governance with a balance roles,
responsibilities, power, and decision-making between board directors, executives as well as
shareholders. The core gaol is sustainably address the issues emanating from the separation

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between the absentee’s owners or shareholders and the appointed managers generally regarded
as the foundation of the well-known principal-agency problem (Jensen and Meckling, 1976).

Corporate governance is simply a system that focus on how companies are directed and
controlled to achieve set goals (Adrian Cadbury Report, 1992). It is the structure put in place
including processes, customs, policies, rules, laws and institutions for directing and controlling
the affairs of corporations in the way they should act to achieve it set objectives (Iyang,
2009:23).

In a nutshell, corporate governance is concerned with how a corporate entity conduct it business
affairs including with its interaction with the immediate environment and the larger society. It
borders on level of compliance with set market rules and code of behaviour, policy direction
of the entities, behaviour of leaders, composition of board, stakeholders’ interest, ethical
disposition, stakeholder’s management processes, entity’s core values, display of honesty and
integrity and the balancing of diverse interests in the corporation among others.

In compliance with the companies’ regulations in the United Kingdom, the structure of
corporate governance of Assos Plc company for the period of 2021 is presented in the audit
report. According to code of corporate governance (Financial Reporting Council, 2018).
requires all companies operating in the UK to provide detailed corporate governance report
including the leadership composition and key activities in the year as part of annual financial
report. The key requirements for effective corporate governance are presented below.

Figure 1: Core areas of Corporate Governance Code

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A review of Asos’s corporate governance for the period under review from the financial
statement indicated that the Board is made up of the Chairperson, one Executive Director and
six non-executive Directors, five of whom are considered to be independent (Assos Plc, 2021:
54). Of these nine board members, three are female while the remaining six male (Asos Plc,
2021:). In terms of age category, while two of the members are within 40-50, five are within
50-60 and two are above 60.

It is an organisational programme involves in connecting the interest of key stakeholders in an

effort to realize company’s objectives (Bhagat and Bolton (2019) through optimum board
composition that takes into account gender, experience and executive and non-executive and
independence of members. Furthermore, role and responsibilities assigned to members must
ensure sound internal control and accounting systems.

A careful review of relevant literatures also indicates that suitable corporate governance
mechanism is capable of ensuring super organisational performance.

As indicated in Asos Plc corporate governance report for the period under review, the non-
executive directors are on the board are appointed primarily to help manage and control the
affairs of the company, challenge the status quo and help formulate strategies to increase value
creation for all stakeholders. At Asos Plc, the designation of seven NEDs is in line with the
corporate governance Code 2018 which state that a least 50% members of the board in any
company operating in the United Kingdom, must be designated Non-Executive Directors
(Financial Reporting Council, 2018).

Furthermore, a review of the corporate governance report reveals that the individual board
members position, qualification, previous experience, roles including board committee
responsibilities are well documented (Asos Plc, 2021: 49-75). Like to other forward-looking
companies operating in the UK, effective Board is vital to the success of ASOS Plc and, to
ensure that the Board continues to operate as efficiently as possible, with the various committee
as well as each Director sufficiently committed to their role, the Board conducts annual
evaluations of its performance and aligned appropriately in line with the corporate governance
code (Asos Plc, 2021: 54; Financial Reporting Council, 2018).

However, some key weaknesses identified with the Asos Plc governance first, borders on
female composition on the board as there were only three females out of nine members for the
period under review. In line with requirements of the governance code, there is need to increase
women’s participation on the board to ensure gender balance and ensure this is applied to all

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levels of Asos business (Financial Reporting Council, 2018). The second is the lack of relevant
details about each of the board members as information on age bracket of the members need to
be documented in addition to their experience, education and all other important value adding
information. Lastly, attendance at the board meetings could be improved as some members
did not attend some of the key meetings held for the period under review even Covid-19
pandemic may have to be responsible.

In fact, Asos Plc governance structure appeared to be effective and significantly in compliance
with the general expectations of the UK corporate Governance codes as relevant factors for
ensuring board effectiveness and improved performance were adequately taking into
cognizance for the period under review.

3.2 Accounting and Internal Control Risks

In organisations generally, internal controls are designed primarily as a further step from basic
accounting and reporting to assure corporate leaders of effectiveness of organisation's activities
and operations. It is additional measures put in place to improve organisational efficiency and
effectiveness (Aren 2016; Chalmers, Hay, and Khlif, 2018; Pakurar et al., 2019). A well-
designed internal control systems helps an organisation comply with policies, procedures, laws
and regulations, safeguard assets, ensure reliability and integrity of accounting information and
efficient use of resources towards accomplishing corporate goals. It also helps company
effectively identify potential risks and possible measures for mitigating risks for efficiency and
better performance.
According to Feng, Li and McVay (2009) internal control is described as a process that aims
to improve organisational processes and procedures effectiveness, efficiency and correctness
to increase the quality goods and services delivery.

A review of the financial report for the period under review revealed that Asos ensured that
effective controls, processes, assessments and mitigations were maintained during the period
especially during the lockdowns occasioned the COVID-19 pandemic, including the continued
operation in the various fulfilment centres, head office and the reopening of customer care site.
The leaders also ensured group’s risk is adequately monitored and follow up on robust process
for identifying principal and emerging risk as a result of Covid-19 pandemic (Asos Plc 2021:
56).

The Board of Assos delegated responsibility for overseeing the effectiveness of the Group’s
internal controls and risk management systems to the Audit Committee (Asos 2021:60).

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Furthermore, they are charged with continuous identification and review of key business risks
and also determines appropriate mitigants considering the group risk appetite towards achieve
set business objectives. To implements a robust internal control, integrated processes and
provides assurance on compliance with these processes throughout the business co-ordinated
by the General Counsel & Company Secretary and the Director of Internal Audit & Risk. In
accordance with the expectation of corporate governance code, Asos has in place a robust
internal control and risk management framework in figure 3 below:

Identify

Report Risk Assess

Management
process

Manage and
Embed
monitor

Figure 3: Asos Risk Management Framework (Asos Plc, 2021: 36)

As a consequence of the risk management capacity, Asos Board has been able to reasonably
minimize risks associated with foreign exchange exposure, sustainability and climate change,
third-part technology service provider failure and ethical trade issues among others (see., Asos
2021:42). The reviewed financial report shows that the Asos’s internal control and risk
management systems has key elements of COSO’s framework for effective internal control
(Hayes et al 2005; 230).

3.3 Audit Risk and Evidence

Audit risk is the likelihood of material misstatement and detection risk (International Auditing
and Assurance Board, 2020) due to errors or frauds or the chances of the activities of the audit
procedures being tinkered with, thereby affecting auditor’s judgement of the financial report.
Audit risks are inherent elements of the audit process and auditor need to carefully monitor and
mitigate to reduce to the barest minimum (Aren, et al, 2016). Audit evidence on the other hand,
is all information used by the auditor in arriving at the conclusions and the opinion. While audit
report increases the level of assurance and stakeholders’ confidence, auditor need sufficient

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and appropriate audit evidence to reach conclusion and express opinion (Muniandy, 2007)
hence, the calls for more independence in the audit process (Stewart and Subramaniam, 2010).

Audit evidence is all the information utilized by the auditor in arriving at the conclusions on
which the audit opinion is based. In fact, they are proof of completeness, accuracy and validity
of business transactions. According ISA 500, auditor is required to design and perform
appropriate audit procedures for the purpose of obtaining sufficient, appropriate audit evidence
to draw reasonable conclusions and audit opinion therefrom (International Auditing and
Assurance Board, 2020). While auditors are not expected to examine all information that may
exist from business transactions, examples of audit evidence include receipts of payments, bank
tellers, bank statements

According to Arens et al (2016) all the information employed by the auditor to reach conclusion
and opinion on financial statement in accordance with the established criteria constitute audit
evidence. It is generally noted that any source document, or any other related document,
required by the auditor to determine the trueness of a transaction, can be referred to as audit
evidence, and that include supporting document such as receipts, bank tellers, bank statements.

Notwithstanding the identification of auditor’s independence as a key risk in the audit process,
audit risks is generally categorized into three as follows;

Inherent risk

Control risk

Detection risk

Figure 4: Categories of Audit Risks

Inherent risks associated with data entry and recording process of the company’s transactions,
the more complex and dynamics is the nature of business transaction the higher the inherent
risk (Arens et al, 2016). While control risks represent the inability of internal control system to
identify errors or frauds in a timely manner detection risk on other hand is the likelihood of
material misstatements not detected by the auditors thereby passing a financial report
erroneously as free and fair (ISA, 2020: 24). It has been noted that a robust internal control

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system helps to reduce audit risks (Feng, M., Li, C. and McVay, S., 2009). If auditor need to
manage risk effectively, there is need to measure it and this gave rise to audit risk model below.

Audit Risk = Inherent Risk X Control Risk X Detection Risk

Financial statement Risk Under the control

of auditor

According to Aren et al (2016) the quality of internal control is measured by the indices
summarized in figure 5 below.

Authenticity and Dependability

First Internal reports to meet globally accepted accounting standards

Optimality and Applicablility

Internal report to meet criteria; coherence, organisation, competence,
Second productiveness and applicability.

Compliance and Adoptability

Internal control must be compliant with relevant rules, standards and legislation
Third within operating envirnment.

Figure 5: Viability Index for Internal Control Systems Index

A review of Asos Plc financial statement reveals that in May 2021, the Corporate Reporting
Review department of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) reviewed the company’s Annual
Report 2020, sought for further explanations on certain accounting and disclosure matters
including; recognition for revenue from brand and collaboration sales, revenue in respect of
delivery receipts is recognised, recognition and measurement for sales returns, and other
sources of estimation uncertainty in the report (Asos Plc 2021, 59). The additional information
and explanation provided were fully accepted by FRC in June, 2021 and the company further
made bold to state unequivocally its commitment towards enhanced disclosures in its annual
accounts in line best global standards (Asos Plc 2021, 59).

The audit report of Asos Plc as provided by PwC business activities and operations for the
period under review indicated that sufficient and appropriate audit evidence and further

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explanations sought were obtained which provided basis the conclusion and opinion (Asos,
2021: 86-89).

3.4 Audit Procedure

This is basically the steps taken by auditors to obtain all information regarding the quality of
financials provided by the company which enable them arrive at a conclusion and form opinion
as to whether financial examined present fairly the state of affairs of the organisation.
Generally, it is described as the step-by-step practice followed by an auditor in the execution
of his audit engagement.

Others have described (see, Sun 2019) audit procedure as a system of activities that embeds all
available techniques used by auditors to obtain and determine the quality of the financial
statement in a bid to form audit opinion and efficient and effective procedures require
computerised accounting system (Almasira et al, 2021).

A review of Asos Plc audit report revealed that audit matters focus on capitalisation of internal
staff costs, fraud in revenue recognition, valuation of inventory, valuation of assets and
liabilities acquired in a business combination, and consideration of the impact of COVID -19
among others for the period under review (Asos Plc 2021: 88-89).

In terms of audit procedures, Asos Plc auditors performed walkthrough tests to gain deeper
understanding of the systems, sought and obtained further explanation regarding capitalisation
of internal employee costs, reconfirm revenue recognition policy on fraud in revenue
recognition (group), reviewed inventory valuation policy, took stock and performed
recalculations to arrive at valuation, obtained and reviewed sale and purchase agreement,
evidence for the consideration paid as part of the acquisition in order to ensure transactions
meets criteria for a business combination in line with IFRS 3 among others (Asos Plc, 2021:90).

3.5 Audit Report and Analysis

In the opinion of the PwC (the auditor), the audit was carried out in accordance with accordance
with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as issued by the International Accounting
Standards Board (IASB), International Standards on Auditing (ISA, UK), the requirements of the
Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Ethical Standard and other applicable laws including the
UK codes and the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. In all the auditor believes that sufficient
and appropriate evidence were obtained including receipts of further explanations which form
the basis for the audit opinion. In the opinion of the auditor, “PwC”, ASOS Plc’s group

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financial statements and company financial statements; give a true and fair view of the state of
the group’s and of the company’s affairs as at 31 August 2021 and of the group’s profit and the
group’s and company’s cash flows for the year then ended; having been properly prepared in
accordance with all relevant standards and laws.

Audit Report and its Limitations

Following the analysis of the audit report provided by Asos Plc, auditor and that submitted by
management of the company for the period under review, indicated that evidence obtained by
the auditor are in compliance with extent laws, reporting and regulatory standards in the UK
as well as international (Asos Plc, 2021:89). As part of the reporting requirements, the auditors
communicated clearly to stakeholders of the company through the submitted audit report
contained in the annual account and that present fairly the state of affairs of the Asos Plc for
the period under review.

Obviously, the auditors thoroughly examined all relevant material items as captured in the audit
report and the aim is ensure that the report address specifically the need of the target audiences
– stakeholders for various decision-making purposes.

Notwithstanding the rigorous process of gathering sufficient audit evidence, the evidence needs
to be very convincing and persuasive to enough as basis for forming opinion. Secondly, there
is also need to ensure that the report is presented as simple as possible to increase stakeholders
understanding.

In respond to the calls for expanding the scope of audit report to cover other emerging and
environmental issues, the auditors need collect conclusive and persuasive evidences capable of
supporting reasonable conclusion and opinion. Furthermore, the presentation needs to be made
simple for ease of understanding by all intended users.

Although the audit report does give a true and fair view of the organisation's activities, there
are some limitations that can be identified in the report. First is the scope covered, the auditor
captured financials such as computation and recognition of revenue but excluded non-financial
information such as emerging societal issues such as climate change, child abuse, child labor,
carbon emission etc. There is obvious need to extend the scope of audit report in the wake of
increasing emerging challenges in the society.

Below is a recommended audit report that shall be utilised by my audit team concerning the
affairs of Asos Plc.

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 ASOS PLC
ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNT 2021

INDEPENDENT AUDITOR’S REPORT

To the Board of Directors and Stakeholders,
Asos Plc.

We have audited the accompanying statement of financial position of Asos Plc and its
subsidiary companies as of August 31, 2021, the related statements of comprehensive and other
income, statement of changes in equity, statement of cash flows for the year ended, and the
related notes to the financial statements.
Management’s Responsibility for the Financial Statements
The Management is charged with responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of the
financial statements in accordance with the UK GAAP, including the design, implementation,
and maintenance of internal control relevant to the preparation and fair presentation of financial
statements that are free from material misstatement, due to either fraud or error.

Auditor’s Responsibility

As auditors, our responsibility is to carry out audit procedure to obtain all evidence and express
an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits in
accordance with the ISA UK and Companies Act of 2006. Those standards require that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements
are free of material misstatement.

It is pertinent to note that this description forms part of our Auditor’s Report.

Auditor’s Opinion

In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects,
the financial position of Airtel Africa Plc as of March 31, 2021 and the results of their
operations (including both revenue and expenditure items) and cash flows for the year ended
in accordance with the UK GAAP.

(Asos Plc’s signature and address required here)

Note: the deadline for reporting in UK is 31st December, 2021 and must be duly noted by Asos.
Plc.

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Extending Audit Horizons

Across the world there has been calls and clamour for the modification to the content of audit
report especially, for business and organisational environmental reporting requirement
following the massive changes sweeping both the political and business landscape in recent
times. This is due to dynamic and constantly evolving nature of the modern operating
organisational environments, making expansion of audit scope and report imperative to take
into consideration other vital factors such as footprint, carbon emission, climate change, child
labour and abuse, domestic violence and racism in the society. In the near future, all such
crucial issues need to find their way into business and organisations audit report as these also
impact on business brand, market value, goodwill and reputation (see, Irfana, Riyadh, and
Sofyani, 2021).

According to Irfana, Riyadh, and Sofyani, (2021) inclusion of a more broader reporting
responsibility by businesses and organisation of human welfare factors such as the Black Lives
Matter (BLM) movement and the impact of Covid-19 pandemic of businesses and orgnisations
(see, Asos Plc 2021: 88-89; Hassan A., Elamer, A.A., Lodh, S., Roberts, L. and Nandy, M.,
2021). In the same vain, VanGuilder (2014) noted that there is need for audit report to play
more crucial role globally by expanding to cover areas such as environmental compliance audit,
information system audit, forensic audit, stakeholders engagement audit, sustainable
development and ethical leadership among others.

4.0 Conclusion

The role of effective corporate governance cannot be overemphasised if Asos Plc must achieve
it set corporate goals in accordance with relevant regulatory requirements. In the wake of
revolutionary changes sweeping business and political space across the world, business leaders
need to constantly reassess approaches to governance including the evaluation of its annual
financial report and accounts to improve assurance and stakeholders’ confidence.

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