recent years, the corporate world has witnessed a spate of financial scandals that have led to the collapse of major companies, shaking investor confidence and prompting questions about the effectiveness of current accounting and auditing standards. Among these, the cases of Wirecard in Germany and Luckin Coffee in China stand out for their global impact and the complexities they introduce into the auditing landscape.

Both collapses have brought the issue of 'information asymmetry' into sharp focus. They have exposed how such imbalances between management and stakeholders can compromise the integrity of financial reporting and the effectiveness of auditing.