The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Trump Media and Technology Group’s auditing firm with fraud after it failed to comply with required accounting standards and falsely claimed that it did—a scheme the agency says may have affected more than 1,500 SEC filings.
FILE - Pedestrians walk past the Nasdaq building as the stock price of Trump Media & Technology ... [+]
BF Borgers agreed to pay a $12 million penalty to settle the charges, and the firm’s owner, Benjamin Borgers, agreed to a $2 million penalty—both the firm and Borgers himself have been permanently suspended from practicing as accountants, according to the SEC.
The SEC did not mention Trump Media—a publicly traded social media company controlled by former President Donald Trump—in its press release about Borgers, or specify whether the company’s statements were impacted by the alleged fraud, but Trump Media’s SEC filings have said Borger began serving as the company’s auditor in 2022.
The SEC alleges the firm failed to comply with Public Company Accounting Oversight Board standards in more than 1,500 filings between 2021 and 2023, while often making false representations or fabricating documentation to appear compliant with the standards.
In a statement to Forbes, Trump Media said it “looks forward to working with new auditing partners in accordance with today’s SEC order.”
Forbes has contacted BF Borgers for comment.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.