Nortel Networks Corp has granted its CFO and its financial controller an extended absence of leave following questions raised over the telecommunications giant’s 2003 financial results.
Both Douglas Beatty and Michael Gollogy are on leave, pending the outcome of an independent review by Nortel’s audit committee into the company’s 2003 finances.
Wall Street certainly did not take the news lightly. News of the two suspensions sent Nortel’s stock tumbling on the NYSE Monday, closing at $5.24, down 18.5%.
The move puts into doubt Nortel’s statement in the middle of last week that it was unlikely that it would revise its previously unaudited results for 2003.
Nortel made no comment on how long the review would take, but appointed an interim CFO and controller for Nortel Networks Corp and its main operating subsidiary Nortel Networks Ltd.
In other news, Baltimore Technologies Plc has sold its remaining stake in Baltimore Technologies Japan to Betrusted Inc for 2.25m pounds ($4m) cash. In September 2003, Betrusted bought Baltimore’s core PKI business for 5m pounds ($9m) when the company decided to abandon the security market after a string of losses. Now Baltimore is little more than a cash shell, directors are considering whether to acquire another company or return the cash to shareholders.
And finally, webMethods Inc and Hewlett Packard have opened the first in a series of pan-Asian integration competency centers. Based in HP’s Hong Kong facilities, the center will provide both companies’ customers with services for configuration and sizing, proof of concept, demonstration and employee training. The companies did not say how many centers would be opened.
This article is based on material originally published by ComputerWire
