Mumbai: VerSe Innovation Pvt Ltd has got a clean audit chit from Deloitte. VerSe Innovation Pvt Ltd is the parent of content platform Dailyhunt and short-video app Josh. Deloitte is its longtime auditor.
Deloitte has issued a clean opinion on VerSe Innovation Pvt Ltd’s consolidated financial statements for financial year 2024 (FY24). The clean audit opinion comes amid the recent exit of VerSe’s Chief Financial Officer, Sandip Basu.
‘Deloitte has issued a true and fair view of our FY24 consolidated financial statements, providing a clean audit opinion on our financials. While Deloitte identified certain internal control weaknesses, their report has clearly confirmed that these findings do not impact their opinion on the consolidated financial statements, which is true and fair. We are fully committed to strengthening our internal controls and remain confident in our plan to achieve break-even in the second half of this financial year,’ said a VerSe Innovation spokesperson.
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Audit firm Deloitte has flagged lapses in VerSe Innovation Pvt. Ltd’s operations. The auditor said that the company did not have appropriate internal controls over the evaluation and selection of suppliers, approval of purchase orders and invoices, and payments.
This could result in “material misstatement in company’s trade payables and expense account balances and preferential payments to suppliers including misappropriation of assets,” Deloitte said as part of VerSe’s consolidated financial statements for 2023-24, which was filed with the ministry of corporate affairs. The material weaknesses were identified in VerSe’s internal financial controls with reference to its standalone financial statements as at 31 March 2024.
Deloitte, however, added that the material weaknesses mentioned “do not affect our opinion on the said standalone financial statements of the company” and that while it was issuing an “adverse opinion” on VerSe’s internal controls, its view on the consolidated financial statements was “true and fair”.
As per VerSe’s FY23 audited results, the company had a total income of Rs 1,809 crore. However, in its FY24 financial statement, VerSe adjusted its total income for FY23 to Rs 1,356 crore. In FY24, its revenue fell to Rs 1,261 crore.
Last month, co-founder Umang Bedi said VerSe expected more than a 75% revenue growth in FY25 aided by acquisitions and a recovering advertising market, and that the company would cut its cash burn or expenses by 30-40% with the help of artificial intelligence-driven innovation.
Over the past five years, VerSe has acquired social media app GolBol, photo-video sharing platform Vebbler, AI solutions provider Cognirel, and online news platform Local Play. VerSe last raised $805 million in April 2022 at a $5 billion valuation from investors including Goldman Sachs, Falcon Edge Capital, Sequoia Capital India, Omidyar Network India, and Matrix Partners.
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