The Registration Authority of Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) has fined an audit firm operating in the free zone after an inspection uncovered multiple deficiencies in its work. MCA Auditors and Advisors LLP and its audit principal were ordered to pay a combined Dh323,180 (about $88,000) in penalties.
Of that total, the firm itself was fined Dh190,970 (roughly $52,000), while its audit principal was fined Dh132,210 (about $36,000) personally. the inspection that preceded the penalty identified several significant shortcomings: weak risk assessment procedures, poor handling of fraud risk, gaps in meeting group audit requirements, and inadequate communication with the governance bodies of the companies being audited. The inspection report also found that the firm had gathered insufficient evidence to support its conclusions in material areas of its audits, and that there was limited evidence the audit principal had been actively involved throughout the engagement, as required.
The penalty is part of ADGM's ongoing supervision of audit quality among firms licensed in the free zone, and comes amid a broader tightening by UAE financial regulators of enforcement against professional misconduct in recent months.