Cerebral is suing its ousted cofounder Kyle Robertson, alleging he by no means repaid a mortgage obtained from the digital psychological well being firm.
Based on a lawsuit filed final week in New York, Cerebral mentioned Robertson defaulted on an almost $50 million mortgage that he took out in January to purchase 1.06 million shares of widespread inventory within the firm. Cerebral alleges Robertson is personally responsible for greater than half of the mortgage quantity plus curiosity and lawyer’s charges.
The go well with mentioned the cofounder of the digital psychological well being startup had the choice to pay in money or direct Cerebral to repurchase or cancel the pledged shares. Cerebral alleges Robertson “repeatedly asserted that he wouldn’t repay the mortgage regardless of his obligation to take action underneath the be aware inside six months of his termination.”
Robertson was replaced as CEO of the corporate in Could as Cerebral confronted rising controversy over its prescribing practices, notably for managed substances like Adderall. He did not instantly reply to a request for comment from Bloomberg concerning the lawsuit.
THE LARGER TREND
The embattled psychological well being firm scooped up enormous numbers of investor {dollars} final yr, together with a $300 million raise introduced in December 2021. In April, a former Cerebral govt sued the company, alleging he was fired after he spoke up about unethical prescribing practices. Cerebral mentioned it believed the complaints had been “with out benefit.”
In Could, the corporate confirmed it had obtained a grand jury subpoena from the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Jap District of New York over doable managed substance violations. The Wall Road Journal has additionally reported Cerebral is under investigation by the Federal Commerce Fee. The corporate has mentioned it stopped prescribing most managed substances.
Earlier this month, Insider reported on a leaked letter from Robertson, arguing Cerebral unfairly positioned blame on him for the corporate’s prescription insurance policies and that he confronted homophobic remarks from Cerebral executives and board administrators. The letter requested inside paperwork and data, which might be an indication of a doable upcoming lawsuit.
