Trump Media auditor slapped with 'massive' fraud charges by SEC

The auditor being used by the parent company of President Donald Trump's Truth Social platform has just been hit with allegations of what the Securities and Exchange Commission describes as "massive" fraud.

CNN reports that BF Borgers, a Colorado-based firm that counts Trump Media and Technology as one of its clients, was accused by the SEC on Friday of committing "deliberate and systemic failures to comply with Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) standards in its audits and reviews incorporated in more than 1,500 SEC filings from January 2021 through June 2023."

Among other things, BF Borgers is charged with fabricating audit documentation to paint a false picture that it was complying with accounting standards, falsely stating in official filings that its audits complied with those standards.

“Ben Borgers and his audit firm, BF Borgers, were responsible for one of the largest wholesale failures by gatekeepers in our financial markets,” said Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “As a result of their fraudulent conduct, they not only put investors and markets at risk by causing public companies to incorporate noncompliant audits and reviews into more than 1,500 filings with the Commission, but also undermined trust and confidence in our markets."

ALSO READ: Trump vs. history: Former presidents typically implode on their comeback tours

The firm has agreed to pay a $12 million civil penalty for its fraudulent actions and its CEO, Benjamin Borgers, has agreed to fork over a separate $2 million penalty.

The SEC has not charged Trump Media with any wrongdoing, however.

A report last month from Bloomberg raised red flags about Trump Media's decision to retain BF Borgers as its auditor, as the PCAOB found "100% deficiency rates" in audits that it reviewed.

Trump Media at the time lashed out at reporters for questioning the firm's integrity, as they argued these reporters were "preemptively attacking our auditors before they’ve even begun their work for us as a public company."