Accounting employee hid over $130M in delivery expenses, says Macy's
What's the story
Macy's, a leading US department store chain, has disclosed that an employee hid more than $130 million in company expenses over the course of some three years.
The finding has resulted in a delay in the release of its latest financial reports.
The person was responsible for keeping a check on costs related to small package deliveries, the retailer said.
Investigation underway
Macy's postpones financial update
The company, which also owns Bloomingdales and Bluemercury, has delayed its quarterly sales report as it continues to investigate the incident.
Macy's found an issue related to delivery expenses earlier this month while preparing its financial update.
A subsequent investigation and forensic analysis found that a "single employee with responsibility for small package delivery expense accounting intentionally made erroneous accounting accrival entries" starting around late 2021.
Business continuity
No impact on vendor payments or cash management
Macy's has assured that the fallout of this incident is contained and won't affect its payments to other companies.
The firm said there's no indication that the erroneous accounting entries had any impact on its cash management activities or vendor payments.
The hidden amount of more than $130 million was a small fraction of the over $4.3 billion in overall delivery expenses during that time.
Employee termination
Macy's terminates employee involved in financial irregularity
The person allegedly responsible for the financial irregularity is "no longer employed" at Macy's.
The firm confirmed that the person behind the conduct is no longer an employee, and the investigation didn't identify involvement by any other worker.
Macy's CEO Tony Spring emphasized their commitment to ethical conduct, stating, "At Macy's, Inc., we promote a culture of ethical conduct."