Amsterdam, 29 June 2022 – X5 Retail Group N.V. (“X5” or the “Company”, LSE and MOEX ticker: FIVE), a leading Russian food retailer that operates the Pyaterochka, Perekrestok and Chizhik retail chains, announces the expiration of the 180-day deadline for the publication of its 2021 audited financial statements.
In March 2022, the Company’s external auditor, Ernst & Young Accountants LLP (the Netherlands), suspended itsaudit services for the Company. Currently the suspension of these audit services is still ongoing. As a result of these extraordinary circumstances, X5 was unable to issue audited financial statements for the financial year 2021 within the 180-day period after the year end.
The Company believes that the audit of X5’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 was completed in all material aspects, and that the financial statements give a true and fair view of the Group’s financial position and performance for 2021. Therefore, the Company released its financial results on 16 March 2022, and on 19 May 2022 the Company released and submitted to the General Meeting of Shareholders its 2021 Annual Report, including the unaudited consolidated financial statements, along with information about the circumstances preventing the issuance of the auditor’s report.
Throughout this time, the Company has been engaged in ongoing efforts to obtain the external auditor’s report on its financial statements. The Company aims to issue its 2021 consolidated financial statements before the end of July 2022, together with an external auditor’s report from TSATR Audit Services LLC (formerly Ernst & Young LLC, Russia, which will operate under the B1 brand going forward), once its separation from the EY global network is completed.