Super Micro Computer Inc. is a $35 billion server maker based in Silicon Valley, California that has ridden the wave of AI enthusiasm.
Our 3-month investigation, which included interviews with former senior employees and industry experts as well as a review of litigation records, international corporate and customs records, found glaring accounting red flags, evidence of undisclosed related party transactions, sanctions and export control failures, and customer issues.
In 2018, Super Micro was temporarily delisted from Nasdaq for failing to file financial statements. By August 2020, the company was charged by the SEC for “widespread accounting violations,” mainly related to $200+ million in improperly recognized revenue and understated expenses, resulting in artificially elevated sales, earnings and profit margins.
Less than 3 months after paying a $17.5 million SEC settlement, Super Micro began re-hiring top executives that were directly involved in the accounting scandal, per litigation records and interviews with former employees.
A former salesperson told us: “Almost all of them are back. Almost all of the people that were let go that were the cause of this malfeasance.”
According to a lawsuit filed in April 2024, Super Micro waited only 3 months after the SEC settlement before restarting “improper revenue recognition,” “recognizing incomplete sales,” and “circumvention of internal accounting controls”.
Full report is here: https://hindenburgresearch.com/smci/
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