Audit firm CohnReznick agreed to pay $1.9 million as part of a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for improper conduct at two of its clients the SEC previously charged with filing fraudulent financial statements.
The agreement, announced Wednesday, addresses alleged deficiencies in CohnReznick’s fiscal year 2017 audits at Sequential Brands Group and purported cryptocurrency firm Longfin Corp. Sequential, after filing for bankruptcy, avoided a fine in settling with the SEC in November over charges it violated accounting principles when it did not properly acknowledge goodwill impairment, while a federal court in September 2019 ordered Longfin to pay $6.8 million in penalties and disgorgement for conducting a fraudulent public offering and falsifying revenue from sham commodities transactions. Longfin shut down in November 2018.
