Hi, I know prcatically nothing about accounting and please excuse me if I'm posting in the wrong group.
I have been looking through some annual accounts and hava found an error in a total. There are seven subtotals but the grand total does not match the sum of the seven subtotals.
The erroneous grand total is a multiple of 9. The correct grand total is also a multiple of 9. The error (of course) is also a multiple of 9. All the other subtotals are multiples of 3.
Could that just be coincidence? or is it slightly improbable, or highly improbable ? If it is strange, then could it be indicative of a known acounting trick? If it is then any further info would be appreciated. What else should I look for?
Another thing is that the amounts should not be totalling to rounded numbers as we are dealing with sums after conversion from foreign currencies. But then again, perhaps the sums were simply rounded down for legibility...
And ... I do realise that "errors of 9" can occur when two numbers in a figure have been inverted by mistake, but I can't see that here.
TIA Jacob.