Michael Woodford at the Shareholder Protection and Corporate Governance Forum

It takes courage to blow the whistle on wrongdoing at work and those brave enough to raise their concerns are putting their livelihood, friendships and health on the line. In some cases they might even be risking their lives. This high toll is something Michael Woodford, the former president of Olympus, knows only too well. When he exposed a $1.7bn (£1.1bn) fraud at the global company and possible links to the Japanese mafia, he was left fearing for his safety with police advising him not to use the balcony of his Thames-side apartment because of the risk of assassination. [Read More…]  

Auditors must rotate, urges Olympus whistleblower Michael Woodford, By Lawrie Holmes, Posted on The Guardian 

Michael Woodford, the former Olympus president turned whistleblower, has attacked the decision of the Competition Commission not to seek automatic rotation of company auditors. Woodford, who sounded the alarm in 2011 over a £1.1bn fraud at the Japanese camera and optical instruments company, says a mandatory change is needed to prevent similar scandals at other companies. In his book Exposure: Inside the Olympus Scandal, Woodford revealed how the close relationship between Olympus and its audit firm KPMG over many years had reduced the likelihood of fraud coming come to light. [Read More…]  

The man who exposed Olympus, by John Arlidge, Posted on The Sunday Times

Michael Woodford blew the whistle on a $1.7bn fraud at Olympus. He was fired and fled Tokyo, fearing for his life. But he fought back — and won. The narrow cobbled streets of Butler’s Wharf, east of Tower Bridge in London, are the scene of notorious crimes. Dickens walked the shadowy alleys between the giant coffee and tobacco warehouses when he was writing the character of Bill Sikes in Oliver Twist. Those buildings are multimillion-pound loft apartments now. The pubs where Sikes planned his crimes are snazzy waterfront restaurants and coffee shops. [Read More…]  

Interview with BBC

To directly listen to Michael’s interview move the dial to 2 hours 41 minutes: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03hwbqz  

Hear a keynote address from Michael Woodford at C5’s  Shareholder Protection and Corporate Governance Forum

When: Thursday, January 30, 2014 For more information please visit the event page. To register your interest in being invited, please contact Bina Nanavati at [email protected]