The Financial Reporting Council (FRC), the UK accounting regulator, is considering formally investigating PwC’s auditing of travel retailer WHSmith.
WHSmith said on Wednesday that an independent review by accounting firm Deloitte revealed its sales had been overstated, with the mistakes made over several years, the Financial Times reported.
After the retailer revealed it had found accounting errors in its US arm in August, PwC flagged WHSmith’s statement to the FRC under its standard practice, according to people familiar with the matter.
The FRC has not decided whether to launch a formal probe into PwC’s work at the travel business.
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FRC and PwC refused to comment on the matter.
The news comes after WHSmith CEO Carl Cowling stepped down from the company last week, following Deloitte’s independent review.
The retail boss departed as group CEO and as board director with immediate effect, but will remain employed by WHSmith until 28 February 2026.
In October, it was also reported that the business had postponed its annual results by more than a month due to its accounting issues.
The group was due to report its preliminary results on 12 November, and postponed their publication to 16 December.
PwC and WHSmith have been approached for comment.
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