B&M poaches Asda exec in bid to recover from accounting gaffe
B&M has poached an Asda executive to replace the chief financial officer who quit over a £7m accounting blunder, as the retailer eyes a drastic turnaround.
The FTSE 250 firm said on Wednesday that Atheeq Akbar, currently vice president of commercial finance at Asda, will join the firm as chief financial officer next year.
B&M’s new finance boss will be charged with leading a turnaround which was launched after a series of profit warnings and the resignation of the firm’s previous finance chief following an accounting blunder.
Mike Schmidt handed in his notice after an accounting error caused £7m of overseas freight costs to be incorrectly counted in the cost of goods sold.
B&M was forced to downgrade its 2026 profit guidance as a result of the gaffe and analysts speculated at the time that the mistake suggests the retailer has “poor financial controls”.
“Just when it looked as if life couldn’t get any worse for B&M, along comes an accounting error which has ultimately cost the finance boss his job,” AJ Bell head of markets Dan Coatsworth said in October.
Responding to Akbar’s appointment, the analyst said this move has triumphed on two fronts: “Relief that B&M has found a new CFO and because they bring considerable experience from big name grocers.”
He added: “B&M needs to find a way to get back on top after slowing growth and having someone with insight into how the likes of Tesco, Morrisons and Asda operate could be incredibly valuable.”
The retailer’s annual profits nearly halved to £227m in the year to March as it saw like-for-like sales remain flat across its 800 UK stores.
Chief executive Tjeerd Jegen said the company had endured a “difficult year that saw profits fall due to a challenging market and execution issues”.
B&M has launched a “back to basics” turnaround plan which it said is already delivering sharper pricing and better in-store availability of its products.
The retailer will hope Akbar’s appointment stabilises its financial leadership after significant churn in the role since Schmidt’s departure.
Veteran chief financial officer Helen Cowling joined on an interim basis in November 2025 before departing the following April, to be replaced by another interim, previous group chief financial officer Peter Waterhouse.
But B&M will have to wait for Akbar to accelerate its turnaround, with the new finance director not due to join the firm until February next year.
He previously held senior finance roles at grocers Morrisons and Tesco, following a career as a chartered accountant at consultancy giant Deloitte.
“His strong commercial background in UK retail will be a great asset as we bring about change to deepen the financial foundations of our business,” Jegen said.
B&M was founded in 1978 and has been listed on the London Stock Exchange since 2014. Its shares bounced six per cent on Wednesday, to 197p.