Patisserie Valerie’s suspended finance director Chris Marsh quits as accounting probes continue
Patisserie Valerie’s finance director quit the company today, the cake shop told investors.
Chris Marsh, who was suspended from his role earlier this month when the sweet treats baker warned it had spotted potentially fraudulent accounting irregularities, has resigned with immediate effect.
“Following the suspension of Chris Marsh on 9 October 2018, the company has now accepted his resignation as the company's finance director with immediate effect, while reserving its position in respect of any potential claims it may have against him,” parent company Patisserie Holdings told investors.
Marsh was arrested and subsequently bailed with no charges as the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) probes a £40m black hole in Patisserie’s accounts.
An investigation by Pricewaterhouse Coopers is also underway.
Chairman Luke Johnson loaned £20m of his own money to plug the gap in the under-pressure bakery’s finances, while it also issued 30m shares to raise £15m.
Most of this was to be used to repay a £10m bridging loan from Johnson designed to give the firm immediate liquidity, while Johnson's other £10m loan doesn't need to be repaid for three years.
Johnson, a veteran investor in businesses like Pizza Express, is a 37 per cent shareholder in the company.
Patisserie Valerie is currently investigating the issuance of two sets of 1m and 666,666 shares to chief executive Paul May and Marsh respectively.
The 2015 and 2016 option grants were not appropriately disclosed and accounted for in Patisserie’s financial statements, the company said.
The business survived a winding up petition from HMRC over £1.14m in unpaid tax this week. The tax office had sought the order to liquidate Patisserie's assets but the High Court of Justice, Business and Property Courts dismissed the request on Wednesday.