Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has vowed to make a £3 billion claim against the estate of Mike Lynch, the founder of British software company Autonomy, following his death on board the superyacht Bayesian off the coast of Sicily.
The technology mogul and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah were among the seven victims when the ship sank two weeks ago.
Despite Lynch’s death, HPE confirmed its intention to proceed with the long-running fraud case against Lynch and his former chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain. An HPE spokesperson said: “HPE’s intention is to follow the proceedings through to conclusion.”
The American technology company is claiming no less than 4 billion dollars in the British lawsuit, which revolves around the sale of Autonomy to Hewlett Packard in 2011 for 7 billion pounds. Initially hailed as “Bill Gates of Britain,” Lynch’s success was marred when the deal collapsed less than a year later, leading HPE to sue Lynch and Hussain in the Supreme Court in 2015. In 2022, the pair were found liable for fraud, with the judge describing their actions as ‘contrived’ deals with no ‘commercial substance’, inflating Autonomy’s value prior to the sale.
Hussain was convicted in 2018 of US criminal charges related to the deal and sentenced to five years in prison. However, Lynch was acquitted in a separate trial in June this year, an outcome seen as an important vindication for the entrepreneur. Nevertheless, the civil case against him continued, with Mr Justice Hildyard expected to rule on damages by the end of the year.
HPE reiterated its commitment to pursue the case against Lynch’s estate, including any post-damage appeals. A spokesperson for Lynch’s family declined to comment on the ongoing proceedings.