1.24 billion in damages for Hp from the estate of Mike Lynch, British tycoon victim of Bayesian
The High Court in London ruled that the American company should be compensated for its purchase of Lynch's company Autonomy, which allegedly inflated its value
US company Hewlett Packard will have to receive a $1.24 billion settlement from the estate of British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, who died in the sinking of the Bayesian yacht in Sicily in 2024. The decision comes from a London High Court ruling in a fraud trial in which Lynch was accused of inflating the value of his company, Autonomy, before its acquisition by Hewlett Packard. The jury has now ruled that there will be no appeal against the restitution obligation, although the option of going to the Court of Appeal remains.
The Process
Involved in the proceedings were Lynch and Autonomy's former chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain, who allegedly overvalued the company purchased by Hp in 2011 for USD 11.1 billion. The US company itself, within a year of the deal, wrote Lynch's company down considerably and attempted to recover damages through the courts.
The High Court ruled last year that Hp had suffered losses of almost £698 million (just over $1 billion at 2011 exchange rates) because it would have paid less for Autonomy if it had known its 'real financial position'.
Back in 2022, the court had already ruled against Lynch and Hussain, albeit for a smaller amount than the $5 billion initially demanded by Hp. The US technology giant said today's ruling established a total of approximately $1.24 billion in damages and interest and "brings another step closer to resolving the dispute". On the late Lynch's side, a family spokesman said he was disappointed with the court's refusal to allow an appeal. The figure set by the London court is still less than the $1.79 billion that Hp had subsequently requested.
Lynch's position
Lynch, once hailed as 'the British Bill Gates', has always maintained his innocence and blamed Hp for failing to integrate Autonomy. In June 2024, the British tycoon was acquitted of related criminal charges in the United States. A verdict that, according to the Lynch family, 'laid bare the truth', namely that Autonomy's devaluation was the result of Hp's actions and failures, not the British company's malfeasance.
