Hewlett-Packard lost hundreds of millions in Autonomy acquisition, judge rules

Hewlett-Packard (HP) lost hundreds of millions of pounds through its acquisition of British software company Autonomy, which was founded by Mike Lynch, a High Court judge has ruled.

The technology firm, now known as Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE), sued the British entrepreneur for around five billion US dollars following its purchase of Cambridge-based Autonomy for 11.1 billion dollars (£8.2 billion) in 2011.

The company claimed at a nine-month trial in 2019 that Mr Lynch inflated Autonomy’s revenues and “committed a deliberate fraud over a sustained period of time”, which it said forced it to announce an 8.8 billion dollar (£6.5 billion) write-down of the firm’s worth just over a year after the acquisition.

In a ruling in 2022, Mr Justice Hildyard said the American firm had “substantially succeeded” in their claim, but that it was likely to receive “substantially less” than the amount it claimed in damages.

He said that Autonomy had not accurately portrayed its financial position during the purchase, but even if it had, HPE would still have bought the company, but at a reduced price.

A hearing was then held last year to decide the amount that Mr Lynch must pay in damages, before the businessman died aged 59 along with his 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, and five others when his yacht, the Bayesian, sank off the coast of Sicily last August.

It is a source of anxiety to me that I have to deliver a judgment that will inevitably cause further stress on those involved

On Tuesday, Mr Justice Hildyard ruled that HPE suffered losses amounting to £697,876,753 through the purchasing of Autonomy, some of which is set to be paid by Mr Lynch’s estate.

He also ruled that Mr Lynch’s estate is liable to pay part of around 47.5 million dollars in damages, which is worth around £35 million.

Some of the money is due to be paid by Sushovan Hussain, Autonomy’s former chief financial officer, who was also sued by HPE.

He was convicted in April 2018 in the US of wire fraud and other crimes related to Autonomy’s sale, and was sentenced to five years in prison.

While he has since settled HPE’s claim, he could still be required to pay damages.

A further hearing to deal with matters including interest, currency conversion and whether Mr Lynch’s estate can appeal against the decision is set to be held in November.

Handing down his ruling, Mr Justice Hildyard expressed his “great sympathy” for Mr Lynch’s family, calling his death a “tragedy”.

He said: “It is a source of anxiety to me that I have to deliver a judgment that will inevitably cause further stress on those involved.”

In the 197-page ruling, he said he considered that HPE’s claim “was always substantially exaggerated” and that the five billion dollars figure claimed “was not based on detailed analysis”.

Following the ruling in 2022, Mr Lynch, who was also the founding investor of cybersecurity giant Darktrace, was extradited to the US in May 2023 to face criminal charges after his removal was approved by the then-Home Secretary Priti Patel.

He was cleared of accusations that he orchestrated a fraud and conspiracy over Autonomy’s sale in the US in June 2024, and was celebrating the acquittal on his yacht at the time of his death.

This result exposes HP’s failure and makes clear that the immense damage to Autonomy was down to HP's own errors and actions

In a statement written before his death, issued posthumously by his representatives on Tuesday, Mr Lynch said: “Today’s High Court ruling reflects that HP’s original five billion dollar damages claim was not just a wild overstatement – misleading shareholders – but it was off the mark by 80%.

“HP acquired Autonomy for 11.6 billion dollars and today’s judgment is a view that Autonomy’s actual value was not even 10% below the price HP paid.

“This result exposes HP’s failure and makes clear that the immense damage to Autonomy was down to HP’s own errors and actions.

“An appeal process will be considered later this year.

“The English civil case included hearsay evidence from the US and we were never able to question or cross-examine those witnesses.

“This is in direct contrast to the rights of defendants in the US legal system.

“When in the US criminal trial we were able to cross-examine the relevant witnesses, a very different story emerged. Why is the English legal system so trusting?”

A spokesperson for HPE said: “We are pleased that this decision brings us a step closer to the resolution of this dispute.

“We look forward to the further hearing at which the final amount of HPE’s damages will be determined.”

Jeremy Sandelson, who was appointed by the court as administrator of Mr Lynch’s estate, said he would be “examining the judgment carefully”, including whether to appeal both the 2022 ruling and the judgment on Tuesday.