X5 First in Russia Certified on Conformity with International Internal Auditing Standards
24 Nov 2008
Moscow, 24 November 2008 – X5 Retail Group N.V., Russia's largest retailer in terms of sales
(LSE ticker: “FIVE”), announces that its Corporate Audit Department has passed the external
assessment on conformity with the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal
Auditing.
The Corporate Audit Department (CAD), acting as an internal audit function of X5 Retail Group,
has successfully passed external quality assessment procedures and has been certified by Ernst &
Young on conformity with the Institute of Internal Auditors’ International Standards for the
Professional Practice of Internal Auditing.
The main goal of X5 Retail Group’s CAD is to provide independent and objective assurance and
value-adding advisory activity that assists the Company in achieving business objectives and
improve operations. CAD conducts systematic and disciplined evaluations of operational, financial
and information systems regarding risk management, internal control and governance processes
aimed to improve the effectiveness of these processes.
The organizational independence of the Corporate Audit Department is guaranteed by the
reporting system: CAD reports functionally to the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board, and
from the administrative standpoint – to the Management Board of X5 Retail Group.
David Gould, Chairman of the Audit Committee of the Supervisory Board of X5 Retail Group,
commented:“We are glad that the Corporate Audit Department of X5 was the first in Russia to successfully
complete the external assessment on conformity with the international standards. Proficient
internal audit procedures are an important prerequisite for achieving high corporate governance
standards and are especially important in the current market environment as they help to enhance
the efficiency of the Company’s actions on risk assessment and management”.
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