LONDON (Alliance News) - Globo PLC said Monday Chief Executive Officer Costis Papadimitrakopoulos and Chief Financial Officer Dimitris Gryparis have both resigned, and a board has been set up to "ascertain the true financial position of the company."
Additionally, Chief Operating Officer Gerasimos Bonanos has been suspended from his duties with immediate effect, pending the outcome of appropriate investigations.
This follows a report published by New York-based hedge fund Quintessential Capital Management last week in which it said it had collected "overwhelming evidence suggesting the existence of what appears to us a large-scale conspiracy to deceive investors and creditors through pervasive and systematic accounting manipulation."
Globo last Friday said it refuted "all allegations" made in the report, and requested its shares be suspended from trading in order to give it more time to provide a more detailed response.
An emergency board meeting was held on Saturday to discuss the allegations in the report and to "ascertain the actions that would be required to resolve the matter." At this meeting Papadimitrakopoulos "brought to the attention of the board certain matters regarding the falsification of data and the misrepresentation of the company's financial situation, and offered his resignation", as did Gryparis, Globo said on Monday.
Following this meeting and legal advice, a committee was set up consisting of non-executive directors only, which accepted the resignations. "All of the executive directors have agreed to make themselves available and fully co-operate with any investigations," Globo said.
The committee has begun talks with appropriate advisers in relation to the "next steps" and to ascertain the company's "true financial position", it said, and has additionally asked the company's lawyers to notify the matter to the appropriate authorities, and informed its principal bankers.
Globo's joint corporate broker Canaccord Genuity Ltd has resigned with immediate effect.
By Hana Stewart-Smith; hanassmith@alliancenews.com; @HanaSSAllNews
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