Autonomy founder Mike Lynch inflated sales before HP deal, court told
Hewlett Packard lawyer accuses UK entrepreneur and former finance chief of ‘false accounting’ to skew software company’s finances
London — British entrepreneur Mike Lynch artificially inflated revenue at his Autonomy software company before selling it to Hewlett Packard (HP) for $11bn, the US firm’s lawyer told a London court on Monday. HP is suing Autonomy founder Lynch, once hailed as Britain’s answer to Bill Gates, along with his former CFO Sushovan Hussain for $5bn after the 2011 deal went disastrously wrong for the Silicon Valley group. Lynch denies any wrongdoing and says HP’s mismanagement was responsible for the failure of the acquisition. HP had bought big-data firm Autonomy with the aim of making it the centrepiece of a plan to transform HP from a computer and printer maker into a software-focused enterprise services firm, a shift that rival IBM had already pulled off. But a year later HP wrote down the value of Autonomy by $8.8bn, saying it had uncovered serious accounting improprieties. These have led it to pursue Britain’s biggest fraud trial against Lynch and Hussain. Lawyer Laurence Rabinowicz, ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.