Christo Wiese's grip on his global furniture retailing empire is slipping after the South African billionaire resigned from the board of troubled Steinhoff International and creditors forced a sale of part of his stake. Wiese stepped down from his role as chairman to resolve questions over any conflict of interest as the owner of Mattress Firm in the US and Conforama in France fights for survival amid a deepening accounting scandal. The resignation came after Steinhoff said its accounting errors stretch back into 2016, highlighting the extent of possible wrongdoing at the retailer, which has led to a more than 80% stock slump since the beginning of last week. The company is due to meet with banks next week to try to navigate a way out of its crisis, which has wiped more than €10 billion off its value. In one of several moves to set up a financial lifeline, Steinhoff Africa Retail, a subsidiary, said Friday that it's refinancing loans with its parent company that amounted to about R16 billion.