Why did 1MDB management and board pressure KPMG to sign off?

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1MDB Management and Board Faced Shareholder Pressure to Expedite Audit Sign-off

The management and board of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) indicated they were under pressure from the company's sole shareholder to have audit firm KPMG approve the company's 2013 financial statements. This pressure stemmed from the shareholder's desire to have the accounts finalized by a specific date, despite KPMG's inability to verify the stated value of a significant investment due to a lack of sufficient information from 1MDB.
KPMG's Inability to Verify Investment Value

KPMG did not sign off on the 2013 audit because 1MDB could not provide the necessary documentation to verify the purported value of its US$2.318 billion investment. The audit firm required key documents to conduct a thorough examination of the underlying assets associated with this substantial investment. The financial statements for the year ending March 31, 2013, were due in September 2013, but remained unsigned by December 2013 due to these information gaps.
Shareholder's Role and Influence

The sole shareholder of 1MDB was MOF Inc, a company wholly owned by the Ministry of Finance. As the finance minister at the time, Najib Razak also served as the representative of the shareholder for crucial resolutions and decisions concerning 1MDB. KPMG's managing director, Datuk Johan Idris, testified that the 1MDB management and board conveyed to KPMG that they were under pressure from this shareholder to expedite the signing of the 2013 accounts.
Meeting with the Shareholder Representative

To address the impasse, KPMG sought clarification directly from the shareholder. KPMG met with then finance minister Najib on December 15, 2013, to discuss the US$2.318 billion investment. During this meeting, Najib expressed a desire for KPMG to finalize and sign off on 1MDB's accounts by December 31, 2013.
Termination of KPMG as Auditor

Following the continued inability to obtain the necessary verification from 1MDB, and on the same day Najib had expressed his wish for the accounts to be signed, December 31, 2013, 1MDB's sole shareholder, MoF Inc, terminated KPMG's services. KPMG was subsequently replaced as the company's auditor by Deloitte KassimChan. Johan agreed that the responsibility for ensuring the proper valuation and auditing of the company's funds rests with 1MDB's senior management and board.

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Why did 1MDB management and board pressure KPMG to sign off?

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