Chill Brands: Vape giant clears CEO of misusing inside information
The chief executive of vape maker Chill Brands has been cleared of misusing inside information following accusations that he had misused inside information.
London-listed Chill Brands launched an investigation after claims involving boss Callum Sommerton were made in January.
But today the board announced that it had “unanimously agreed” that the accusations were “completely without merit” bringing to an end the three month investigation.
It added: “Following a thorough review and consultation with various professional advisors, it has been determined that the allegations of the misuse of inside information, which stemmed from Mr. Sommerton’s investment in the company’s equity fundraising announced on 26 January 2024, are completely without merit.
“The investigation has clearly shown that the information concerned, relating in part to the company’s development of new products, does not meet the criteria for inside information and had been appropriately disclosed to the market, including in the company’s announcements of 19 September 2023 and 3 January 2024.
“Consequently, the board has concluded that Mr. Sommerton has no case to answer and should be fully exonerated from these allegations.”
Sommerton added: “Over the past month we have been working hard to restore confidence in our business. We thank our customers and suppliers for continuing to work with us through this period.
“We recognise that there is much work to do to ensure that the Company can progress from a position of strength, but I am pleased that Chill Brands has maintained its trading activities.”
Chill Brands also announced that it had appointed its former CEO Nick Tulloch as a non-executive director.
The company’s co-founders Trevor Taylor and Antonio Russo resigned from the board last month following pressure from shareholders.
Tulloch was an executive director from Chill Brands between 2019 and 2020, initially as finance director and subsequently as CEO.
He is also is a director of several publicly traded companies, including AIM-quoted gold explorer, ECR Minerals plc, Aquis-quoted Voyager Life plc, a health and wellness company and DG Innovate plc, the research and development company developing solutions in sustainable mobility and energy storage.