Audit of FSIN books flags $34M in questionable, ineligible transactions

SaskatchewanA forensic audit requested by Indigenous Services Canada has flagged $34 million in questionable, ineligible and unsupported transactions at the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) from 2020 to 2024.Audit reveals $23.5 million in questionable expenses related to COVID-19 fundingChris Edwards · CBC News · Posted: Sep 12, 2025 8:48 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours agoA media event outside the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations building in Saskatoon is shown in a file photo. A forensic audit has identified $34 million in questionable transactions at the organization. (Liam Richards/The Canadian Press)A forensic audit requested by Indigenous Services Canada has flagged $34 million in questionable, ineligible and unsupported transactions at the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) from 2020 to 2024.On Thursday, FSIN executives were shown a report from the consulting firm KPMG. Slides from that presentation were shared with CBC News.In the summary table, KPMG reported auditing $47.1 million in transactions logged by the FSIN, and flagging $34.3 million worth of them. It classifed $3.7 million as “ineligible,” $30.4 million as “questionable” and $156,000 as “unsupported.”KPMG’s presentation said “questionable” expenses were those without complete supporting documentation. It said those were primarily related to consultant expenditures where “the deliverables and rationale for the procurement appear vague.”Representatives of FSIN have not responded to CBC’s requests for comment for this story.COVID-19 funding examinedIndigenous Services Canada informed the FSIN in March 2024 that it would be conducting the audit after receiving allegations of financial mismanagement.The transactions examined were from 2020 to 2024. The largest amount flagged in the audit was $23.5 million in questionable expenses related to COVID-19 funding.Between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2023, KPMG reported that the FSIN received $30 million in COVID-19 related funding. It audited $26.5 million of those funds, and found that only $3 million of the reviewed transactions could be classified as “eligible.”KPMG also questioned $8 million in administration fees and most of the “internal charges,” including nearly $74,000 worth of excess photocopying charges.The audit also flagged payments to a former employee, classifying $246,524 paid to that person as “ineligible.” KPMG said the person received money through a contract with FSIN to a personal company “to perform services that appear to align with their responsibilities as an employee,” and received a severance package that appears to have been inappropriate. In a social media post referring to a story on panow.com, which was the first media outlet to report on the audit, Muskeg Lake Cree Nation Kelly Wolfe described the findings as “deeply troubling.””We cannot afford to ignore this moment,” he said. “We have both the opportunity and the duty to step into something better: a modern, Treaty-based governance system rooted in collective responsibility, transparency, and the wisdom of our ancestors.”During the summer, James Smith Cree Nation voiced concerns about FSIN’s handling of federal pandemic relief money. “Last year, James Smith Cree Nation raised concerns about a $1-million discrepancy in COVID-19 funding that was expected to flow through FSIN,” Chief Kirby Constant said in a statement on July 14.In a statement to CBC News on Friday, Indigenous Services Canada said the audit report will be finalized and a summary letter will be sent to the FSIN, detailing recommendations. “A summary of the audit findings will be posted to the department website and be available to the public before Sept. 30. Our policy is to provide a summary only. We are unable to speak to any further details at this time,” it said.ABOUT THE AUTHORChris Edwards is a reporter at CBC Saskatchewan. Before entering journalism, he worked in the tech industry.With files from Brett Forester