Can Teza Survive? CIO Says Code Upload Drew Reprimand

Startup Teza Technologies is battling for its legal life after one of its programmers was arrested for stealing secrets from Goldman Sachs, its three founders were sued by their former employer for violating non-competes, and, in the latest development, another employee was reprimanded for uploading code that might have come from former employee UBS. As CIO William Sterling says, "A lot has changed."

Bob Evans, Contributor

October 6, 2009

1 Min Read
InformationWeek logo in a gray background | InformationWeek

Startup Teza Technologies is battling for its legal life after one of its programmers was arrested for stealing secrets from Goldman Sachs, its three founders were sued by their former employer for violating non-competes, and, in the latest development, another employee was reprimanded for uploading code that might have come from former employee UBS. As CIO William Sterling says, "A lot has changed."From Reuters:

A top executive at Teza Technologies said on Monday that the high frequency trading startup had reprimanded another employee last month after it learned he uploaded code to company computers that he may have developed at a previous employer.

Testifying in the civil lawsuit filed against Teza by Citadel Investment Group, Chief Information Officer William Sterling said Teza had immediately removed the code from its systems. Sterling, a former top IT executive at UBS AG, said the reprimanded programmer had joined Teza from the Swiss banking giant as well -- but it was unclear when or where the code had been written.

Teza had hoped to begin trading by Dec. 1, Sterling testified, but in light of the legal entanglements it has encountered, the company is not likely to hit that target. Indeed, the founders said that if the court hearing the non-compete complaint against them grants an injunction that's being considered, the company might not survive.

About the Author

Bob Evans

Contributor

Bob Evans is senior VP, communications, for Oracle Corp. He is a former InformationWeek editor.

Never Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.

You May Also Like


More Insights