- Further delays pushes results publication to 2 months beyond regulated timeframe
- Cites the need to regularize financials with a view to increase transparency on sources of funding
- Year-end results now expected by the end of May
HARARE- Listed life assurer, Fidelity Life has issued a notice to its shareholders advising of a further delay in the publication of its year-end financials for the 2020 financial period.
This is a second deferment under 2 months as companies battle computing financial statements in inflation-adjusted terms, COVID-19 induced slow pace in results computations among other issues.
Earlier in March, the ZSE gave public listed companies a reprieve allowing them an extra month from to publish their financials. Regulation stipulates that companies should publish their financials within 3 months from the end of the financial period being reported on.
Over 50% of the ZSE listed companies have financial year ends falling in the month of December, which means most full-year financials are supposed to be released by the end of March of the ensuing year, post year end.
Fidelity Life, similar to most of the listed entities had invoked the reprieve to extend their financials release to a period expected to be no later than the end of April.
However, the latest notice to shareholders cites that the company has sought further delays by a month citing a pertinent matter relating to the separation of Pooled Funds assets between shareholders and policyholders.
In a statement, the company said “ The Company recently completed a comprehensive exercise to separate its Pooled Fund of assets between policyholders and shareholders to ensure greater transparency and compliance with the requirements of the Insurance Act (Chapter24:07) and the Pensions and Provident Act (Chapter 24:09)”
The company further said “We, therefore, are required to restate our previously published results for 2018 and 2019 to reflect the outcomes of the Asset Separation exercise and this has led to a delay in the publishing of our 2020 financial statements”
Most regional jurisdictions have already seen their listed companies release their earnings despite some of them have exposure in Zimbabwe and being of larger size compared to most ZSE companies.
The regulation stipulating the timeframe over which results should be released is typically designed to protect investors as it forces companies to released the most latest information on the company’s performance which investors would typically use in the trading of the respective company’s shares.
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