Theranos chief executive Elizabeth Holmes charged with massive fraud

[DonViejo]

Source: The Washington Post




By Carolyn Y. Johnson March 14 at 12:54 PM

Elizabeth Holmes, founder and chief executive of the blood-testing company Theranos, has been charged with an "elaborate, years-long fraud" by the Securities and Exchange Commission in which she and former company president Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani "allegedly deceived investors into believing that its key product -- a portable blood analyzer -- could conduct comprehensive blood tests from finger drops of blood," the SEC said.

Theranos and Holmes have agreed to resolve the charges against them, but have not admitted nor denied the allegations. Holmes is ceding her voting control of the company and reducing her equity stake in the company.

Theranos, a blood-testing startup that promised to revolutionize consumers' access to their medical information, was a Silicon Valley darling once valued at $9 billion. Holmes, had the perfect backstory: a college dropout-turned-chief executive who had assembled a company board filled with powerful ex-government and military leaders and wanted to change the world.

The company fell from grace in a snarl of regulatory problems and the revelation that its proprietary technology was not being used in its blood tests.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/03/14/theranos-chief-executive-elizabeth-holmes-charged-with-massive-fraud/?utm_term=.5894e2acae6d

[Angry Dragon]

1. Another falls.............corporations can not be trusted

[dhol82]

2. Well, guess that proves it:

If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

[dbackjon]

3. They had a big location in Arizona two blocks from my house

In the SkySong Complex. Over 200 employees at one time, in a taxpayer subsided development.

[matt819]

5. WTF?

"Theranos and Holmes have agreed to resolve the charges against them, but have not admitted nor denied the allegations. Holmes is ceding her voting control of the company and reducing her equity stake in the company. "

How nice. Now, how about a lovely little trial, where she and her colleague are found guilty and sentenced to years in jail?

[dalton99a]

6. +1

[Lucky Luciano]

9. Im stunned. She should be looking at significant prison time. nt

[Locrian]

7. oh nooes....

''Innovators who seek to revolutionize and disrupt an industry must tell investors the truth about what their technology can do today, not just what they hope it might do someday.''

There goes my stock in smoke and mirrors!!!


Isn't this sop for just about every company now adays?!

[MineralMan]

8. She's quite a piece of work.

I've been following her since the first publicity she got. She used her energy and appearance to run an elaborate long con that took in some really big names. It was an amazing journey she was on, but it appears that time has run out without the big payoff.

I'll be watching for her next try. She's an interesting character, to be sure.

[ut oh]

10. And the countdown to her becoming the next SEC Chairman

3....2...1...

[not fooled]

11. Just how much

do these grifters have socked away in offshore tax havens in secret accounts?

They must have known the day of (kinda) reckoning would come and planned accordingly.

[nitpicker]

12. Link to the SEC PR

https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2018-41

[UpInArms]

13. This is where Mad Dog Mattis was before trump named him defense secretary

That technology was never deployed on the battlefield by the Defense Department, even though Marine Gen. Jim Mattis, who then led the U.S. Central Command, personally pushed for it. Regulatory officials in the military had flagged problems with Theranos's approach. Mattis later joined Theranos's board; he resigned to become defense secretary.