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Welcome to the IPO kitchen - where the deals are cooked up

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Why you can trust SCMP
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The company's investors include two international private equity funds and dozens of 'long funds'. A leading investment bank was one of its sponsors. Its auditor is a Big Four accounting firm and its bonds are rated by Moody's.

Yet this week China Forestry told the market that almost everything of significance at the company had been falsified by its former management - its logging permits, its management accounts and its bank statements.

'The Board has reason to believe that the financial statements in previous years might not reflect the true and fair view of the Company's financial performance and position,' said China Forestry, which was listed in late 2009.

China Forestry said it had managed to verify most of its forest ownership and cash deposits. But its auditor KPMG said with most accounting staff and papers missing, they could not form an opinion about management's assessment of its ability to continue as a going concern.

How could the big names get it so wrong?

Welcome to the IPO kitchen where the deals are cooked up. Everyone gets paid for delivering a dish, even if they don't taste it. And nobody is punished for sending out rotten food.

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