Ex-Autonomy boss Mike Lynch charged with fraud in the US
Mike Lynch, founder of Autonomy
Mike Lynch, Autonomy’s former chief executive, has been charged with fraud in the US.
The charge, which carries a maximum term of 20 years, relates to its 2011 sale to computer giant Hewlett-Packard.
Prosecutors have targeted Mr Lynch after his former finance chief, Sushovan Hussain, was found guilty in April of accounting fraud.
Software giant Autonomy was seen as a runaway British success story at the time of its $10.3bn (£8bn) sale to HP.
Before it was bought by Hewlett-Packard, Autonomy was a UK company which maintained headquarters in San Francisco and Cambridge.
In 2010, about 68% of Autonomy’s reported revenues came from the US and elsewhere in the Americas.
According to the charges, between 2009 and 2011, Mr Lynch and Mr Chamberlain, and other co-conspirators artificially inflated Autonomy’s revenues by overstating them.
They are also accused of making misleading statements to regulators and market analysts covering the company.
The charge sheet also says they “intimidated, pressured and paid off persons who raised complaints about or openly criticized Autonomy’s financial practices and performance”.
