It saw £ 7bn ( $ 9bn ) , or over a fifth of the company ’s turnover , wiped off shares on Tuesday as the full extent of the accounting scandal at the Italian section of the business became apparent . In December , the company announced that “ improper sales , purchase , factoring and leasing transactions ” had led to Italian earnings being overstated . At the time , BT predicted that the overall cost to its business would be £ 145 m . Van Dulken said BT still expected to increase its dividend by 10% for the next two years, but it was unclear whether that would satisfy disgruntled shareholders who, before Tuesday, had seen the company’s share price lose more than 20% since the start of 2016. It has now revised that figure to £ 530 m . The announcement , combined with reports of a slowdown in other operations , resulted in the collapse of share prices .
It saw £ 7bn ( $ 9bn ) , or over a fifth of the company ’s turnover , wiped off shares on Tuesday as the full extent of the accounting scandal at the Italian section of the business became apparent . In December , the company announced that “ improper sales , purchase , factoring and leasing transactions ” had led to Italian earnings being overstated . At the time , BT predicted that the overall cost to its business would be £ 145 m . It has now revised that figure to £ 530 m . The announcement , combined with reports of a slowdown in other operations , resulted in the collapse of share prices .