Bursa reprimands Top Builders for late issuance of 2021 annual report

• The construction engineering company only issued the report — including audited financial statements — on Nov 22, 2021, a delay of 15 market days from the Oct 31, 2021 deadline, said Bursa in an announcement on Friday (Dec 30).

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 30): Bursa Malaysia Securities has publicly reprimanded Top Builders Capital Bhd for failing to issue its annual report for the 18-month period ended June 30, 2021 (FY2021) within the stipulated time.

The construction engineering company only issued the report — including audited financial statements — on Nov 22, 2021, a delay of 15 market days from the Oct 31, 2021 deadline, said Bursa in an announcement on Friday (Dec 30).

It said the Practice Note 17 company was also required to review and ensure the adequacy and effectiveness of its financial reporting function, as part of the penalty for breaching the Main Market Listing Requirements.

None of Top Builders directors were found to have caused or permitted the breach by the company, said Bursa but stressed that it was the duty of the directors to maintain appropriate standards of responsibility and accountability to shareholders and the investing public and ensure that such financial reporting breach would not recur.

Top Builders directors at the material time were Ng Chye Poh and Yong Kok Yee (both resigned on April 7, 2022) as well as Lok Ping Chow (resigned on July 29, 2022) and Shekh Jamaluddin Shekh Sarwandin (resigned on Dec 30, 2021).

In July, five former directors of Caely Holdings Bhd were appointed to the board of Top Builders.

Bursa, in its announcement, noted that the delay in the issuance of the 2021 annual report was mainly due to Top Builders' failure to maintain or provide the necessary information, documents or accounting records on a timely basis to the company's external auditor.

Meanwhile, Top Builders appears to have committed the same breach with regard to its 2022 annual report.

"The board of directors wishes to announce that the company is unable to issue and submit its 2022 annual report by Dec 30, 2022, the expected timeline from Oct 31, 2022," the company said in a filing on Friday.

"The further delay was mainly [because] the new board of directors appointed since July 2022 had found certain irregularities in the financial activities which need to be verified or reconciled. With such material discovery, the company requires at least an additional two months, that is by February 2023, to finalise the financial report," Top Builders said.

Shares of Top Builders, formerly known as Ikhmas Jaya Group Bhd, remain suspended from trading since Nov 8 for the pending submission of the 2022 annual report.

The company has also failed to submit its financial report for the quarter ended Sept 30, 2022 by the Nov 30, 2022 deadlline. It said the report was "pending finalisation" and was now targeted to be completed by February 2023.