NEW YORK, United States (CMC) – Barbados singing sensation Rihanna has won a multimillion-dollar settlement after she nearly went bankrupt reportedly based on bad advice from her former accountant.

Rihanna, whose real name is Robyn Fenty, claimed her ex-accountant Peter Gounis and the Manhattan accounting firm, Berdon LLP, gave her the green light to buy a US$7-million Southern California house, “even though she was bleeding cash in 2009,” the New York Post reported.

“The defendants advised Ms Fenty by email that purchasing a home in Los Angeles “would be a good investment”, despite knowing Ms Fenty was experiencing financial difficulties,” wrote Rihanna’s lawyer Edward Estrada.

In the lawsuit, Rihanna claimed that she lost US$9 million, leaving her with just US$2 million at the end of 2009.

Her lawyers claimed Gounis was aware the house she was buying was rotting from water and mould damage, forcing her to spend more than US$1 million on improvements before selling it for nearly US$2 million less than what she paid, according to the New York Post newspaper.

The paper said Rihanna fired the accountants and sued them for US$35 million in 2012. It said the firm has offered the singer a settlement of more than US$10 million, and papers are due to be signed soon.