More scandals revealed at fraud-mired firms

NEWS The spate of accountancy scandals which have rocked major companies around the world in the past 12 months shows no signs of abating, with the names of Qwest and Vivendi back in the news today for all the wrong reasons. An investigation has been launched in France into the finances of Vivendi, following allegations that the company misled investors by releasing falsely reported results. Shareholders lodged a complaint against the accounting practices of Vivendi under former boss Jean-Marie Messier who was shown the door earlier this year. Messier's successor Jean-Rene Fourtou is now in the unenviable position of steadying the Vivendi ship following his predecessor's chequered time in charge, during which he ran up debts of E20bn on the back of a major acquisition spree. Troubled telco Qwest meanwhile has announced it is to write-off a further $40.8bn following an investigation into its own accounting practices. The write-off comes as the company is cutting the value of key assets such as its fibre-optic network and local telephone networks. Qwest is to release its results later this week. On news of the write-off shares in Qwest fell 18 cents to $3.28 in after-hours trading.