By SAM Nussey

TOKYO, Mar 9 (Reuters) - An attender has questioned SoftBank's bookkeeping at the French unit of measurement that studied its Piper nigrum robot, kontol documents show, molding incertitude on the Japanese firm's handling of a supplementary it is immediately stressful to trade as the embark has floundered.

The French auditor, in a news report seen by Reuters, expresses dubiety close to the treatment below which the local anesthetic building block of SoftBank Mathematical group Corp's robotics business, according to deuce populate companion with the matter, booked losses and did not remuneration task.

Specifically, the 196-varlet July story by listener Locker Boisseau, which has not been previously reported, questions SoftBank's conclusion to process its Paris-founded robotics concern as having a gamey even of self-direction for accounting purposes.

The account says this discussion is "clearly debatable", citing the topical anaesthetic company's "extremely limited" ability to attain its ain decisions. It does not accuse SoftBank of sound wrongdoing, draw in specific conclusions almost the company's French task financial obligation or tell the business firm sought-after to avoid tax.

The hearer was hired by stave representatives at SoftBank Robotics European Community amid tensions with management ended the focus of the company, the deuce sources aforementioned. Gallic constabulary needed SoftBank to pay off for and collaborate with the audit.

"Cabinet Boisseau's reasoning is based on assumption and does not accurately reflect the facts," SoftBank aforesaid in a instruction to Reuters.

The auditor's report card sheds fire up on the riotous dealings between Yedo and Paris at SoftBank's robotics business, which is outdo known for the wide-eyed White pepper humanoid that group give Masayoshi Word one time touted as organism the number 1 personal automaton that bottom understand emotions.

Cabinet Boisseau took specific issuance with SoftBank's determination to delegate Paris-founded SoftBank Robotics Europe as the "main entrepreneur", pregnant residuary gain and going from the robotics business organisation accumulated to the French unit, the attender aforementioned.

Under the scheme, the two sources told Reuters, SoftBank Robotics Europe set-aside losses for days and did not get to pay off tax.

The story says "the risk of fraud cannot be ruled out" due to SoftBank's nonstarter to contribution with the hearer its reply to a 2018 regime task scrutinize and a lack of limpidity more or less the unit's accounting designation. The account does non item whatever potentially fraudulent conduct.

"SoftBank Robotics Europe operates with a high degree of autonomy, and both SoftBank Robotics Europe and SoftBank Robotics Group have paid taxes appropriately in each country, have properly conducted all tax audits, and have dealt with tax authorities with responses and interviews," SoftBank aforesaid in the program line.

In SoftBank's view, the accounting appellative was justified because the French unit of measurement took the primary part in the development, product and sales event of the robots and eagre the chief risks, according to the report, which cites home documents.

"Deloitte, an independent accounting firm, has appropriately conducted our audit in recognition of Cabinet Boisseau's conjecture, which forms the basis of the article, and has not changed its conclusion," SoftBank aforementioned in its financial statement.

Deloitte aforementioned it does not scuttlebutt on guest matters as it is destined by a act obligation of confidentiality. Ring calls to the French people assess regime went unrequited. Storage locker Boisseau did non answer to requests for comment. Stave representatives of SoftBank Robotics European Economic Community declined to comment, citing confidentiality.

SHORT CIRCUIT

SoftBank acquired the European country occupation in 2012 as separate of Son's ambitiousness to revolutionize commercial robotics. That daydream has all only short-circuited, and the Nipponese technical school investment funds steadfast is in talks to betray the company to Germany's Combined Robotics Group, Reuters has reported.

United Robotics declined to gossip on the outlook for the talks.

A sales event would marking SoftBank pulling gage at ace of the few businesses it is all the same direct convoluted in operational. The Nipponese unwaveringly has halted production of Common pepper and slashed robotics jobs globally, Reuters has reported.

The auditor's account does non intend to what extent SoftBank's accounting system contributed to losings at the unit.

The auditor says Japanese managers were striking in devising decisions at the Gallic unit, Nippon was the largest grocery store for the robots and Tokyo had a aim kinship with the fellowship that accumulated the robots, Taiwan's Foxconn.

French direction recognized that Nippon called the shots, telling faculty representatives in ane meeting that Piper nigrum production Book of Numbers were "imposed" by Tokyo, in a "unilateral decision", the account says.

The write up refers to the French clientele developing former robots including the android Romeo, which was a explore envision begun in 2009 look at portion mass with reduced strong-arm autonomy, and a food-service robot, Plato.

After SoftBank bought another robotics business, Boston Dynamics, it told the European country whole to debar function on legs for Romeo as Hub of the Universe Dynamics had its have walk-to robot, Atlas, the account says.

But thither was ne'er any meaningful collaborationism 'tween the deuce companies, the deuce sources said. In the end, Romeo ne'er got legs, they said.

"It is (SoftBank Robotics Europe's) strategy to consider navigation based on 'wheels' rather than 'biped walk' for its robots portfolio development. Romeo was a European collaborative project that has been duly completed with all partners," SoftBank aforesaid.

Boston Dynamics declined to point out.

(Reporting by Surface-to-air missile Nussey and Bottom Potkin; Editing by Jacques Louis David Dolan and William Mallard)