Audit and Assurance

We provide quality audit and assurance services to clients in a diverse range of industries and scales including both private clients and public companies. Our audits are conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (“ISAs”).

Audit methodology
Our audit approach is primarily risk-based and is focused on ensuring the financial statements comply with the applicable accounting standards, which are usually IFRS and/or IFRS for SMEs. As part of the audit, we provide management with recommendations to assist in improving internal controls, operational and administrative effectiveness and efficiency, and financial reporting.

Our Audit Approach includes the following five steps:

• Planning
  In this phase, we understand the entity’s operations, control environment, accounts, and information systems.
• Risk assessment
  We use our understanding of the entity’s internal control system and operations to identify the inherent audit risks and strengths of its businesses and information systems. By performing this risk assessment, we can customize our audit approach to focus our audit efforts on key risk areas.
• Testing and evaluation of controls
  We will evaluate the entity’s operations and its internal control system. Based on the results of this evaluation, we determine the extent of our substantive testing.
• Substantive testing
  When appropriate, we use audit software to assist with performing substantive testing, along with other procedures involving test of details, substantive analytical reviews, and confirmations.
• Concluding and reporting
  We conclude on the financial statement, internal control recommendations, and reporting to those charged with governance, to meet requested reporting deadlines. Drafts of all of our reports are provided to management for their input and review shortly after the conclusion of the fieldwork.

Audit technology
Detailed planning and use of technology increase engagement efficiency, enabling us to provide timely delivery of services.

Each Grant Thornton member firm follows a consistent approach, so you can feel secure that the same high-quality standard will be provided regardless of the jurisdiction. Grant Thornton’s audit methodology is designed to deliver a consistent standard of audit service to clients, no matter where they operate. Audit teams, therefore, avoid the need to reconcile documentation from a patchwork of different tools. Grant Thornton member firms use a proprietary software tool called LEAP.

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and International Financial Reporting Standard for Small & Medium Sized Entities (IFRS for SMEs)
We assist clients with IFRS and IFRS for SME’s as follows:

• Assisting management with the evaluation and selection of IFRS and IFRS for SME’s accounting policies.
• Identifying the differences between IFRS and IFRS for SME’s and other GAAPs and the necessary information to perform the conversion.
• Evaluating the necessary adjustments to align the entity’s financial reporting with the proper basis of accounting.
• Assisting in the preparation of the financial statements and applicable disclosures and communications.

We provide services with less assurance than an audit that may help clients accomplish their business and stakeholder needs.

We perform Review Procedures in which we obtain limited assurance that there are no material modifications that should be made to the financial statements for the statements conform with the applicable financial reporting framework. In a Review Engagement, we accumulate review evidence to obtain a limited level of assurance.

In Compilation Engagements, we assist clients in presenting financial information in the form of compiled financial statements without undertaking to obtain or provide any assurance that there are no material modifications that should be made to the financial statements to be in conformity with the applicable financial reporting framework.

We have significant experience with understanding how to mitigate risks and assess compliance with contractual and regulatory requirements.
 
A compliance audit consists of obtaining sufficient appropriate audit evidence to form an opinion and report at the level specified in a contractual or regulatory audit requirement on whether an entity complied in all material respects with the applicable compliance requirements. It also includes identifying audit and reporting requirements specified, that are supplementary to IFRS and IFRS for SME’s or General Accepted Accounting Standards and where necessary performing procedures to address those requirements. Examples include AML/CFT audits; audits required under loan agreements with financing institutions; and audits required pursuant to Grant or other funding from multilateral agencies.

With agreed-upon procedures engagements, we assist clients in the assessment of accounting, operational, and administrative records and procedures.

An Agreed-Upon-Procedures Engagement is one in which we are engaged by a client to perform specific procedures and report our findings. We do not perform an audit or provide an opinion relating to the subject matter or assertion about the subject matter.