The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has launched an investigation into the conduct of two former employees at Vistry Group.
The regulator said it is examining financial reporting linked to one of the housebuilder’s divisions during the 2023 and 2024 financial years. The investigation relates to the actions of two unnamed accountants involved in preparing or overseeing the relevant accounts.
The inquiry was announced yesterday and concerns potential issues in how financial information was reported during the period under review.
Vistry Group issued the first of three profit warnings in October 2024 after identifying cost overruns in its South Division partnerships business. The company said building costs on several developments had been underestimated by around 10%, initially affecting nine of the region’s 46 projects.
The issue was initially expected to reduce pre-tax profit by around £115m. A subsequent internal review later identified further cost pressures across additional projects, raising the estimated impact to £165m.
The regulator said its investigation relates solely to the conduct of the two accountants and does not include Vistry Group or any other individuals or organisations. It added that the launch of the inquiry does not imply that misconduct has occurred.
The FRC has not disclosed the identities of the individuals involved or provided further details about the accounting matters under review.
“Vistry will cooperate fully with the investigation and provide any assistance required.
“The matter is limited to these two individuals and, as the Financial Reporting Council has stated, the opening of an investigation does not indicate that the FRC has made, or will make, any findings of misconduct in relation to the individuals concerned.”