Theranos CEO To Be Barred From Company, Pay $500K To Settle SEC’s ‘Massive Fraud’ Charges
Elizabeth Holmes did not admit or deny the allegations that she exaggerated or lied about her blood-testing technology while raising $700 million from investors.
The New York Times:
Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos C.E.O. And Silicon Valley Star, Accused Of Fraud
Holding up a few drops of blood, Elizabeth Holmes became a darling of Silicon Valley by promising that her company’s new device would give everyday Americans unlimited control over their health with a single finger prick. Ms. Holmes, a Stanford University dropout who founded her company, Theranos, at age 19, captivated investors and the public with her invention: a technology cheaply done at a local drugstore that could detect a range of illnesses, from diabetes to cancer. (Thomas and Abelson, 3/14)
The Associated Press:
Holmes Surrenders Theranos, Pays $500K After 'Massive Fraud'
Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford University dropout once billed as the "next Steve Jobs," has forfeited control of Theranos, the blood-testing startup she founded, and will pay $500,000 to settle charges that she oversaw a "massive fraud. "Under an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Holmes is barred from serving as an officer or director of a public company for 10 years. The SEC said Wednesday that it will pursue its case against the president of the company, Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, in federal court. (3/14)
The Wall Street Journal:
SEC Charges Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes With Fraud
The SEC began investigating Theranos after The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2015 that the lab instrument developed as the linchpin of the company’s strategy handled just a small fraction of the tests sold to consumers. Some employees also were leery about the machine’s accuracy, the Journal reported. Theranos was valued at more than $9 billion at the time and Ms. Holmes’s majority stake at more than half that. (Carreyrou, 3/14)