Fred Anderson, Apple Inc.'s former chief financial officer, has agreed to settle with the Securities and Exchange Commission on his alleged part in backdating stock options, according to reports on Tuesday. Anderson will pay a $150,000 fine and repay option gains of about $3.5 million, but won't admit to any wrongdoing and won't be barred from serving as a corporate officer or on the board of public companies, the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News both reported, quoting unnamed people familiar with the case. They also reported that the SEC is expected to pursue a civil lawsuit against the company's ex-general counsel Nancy Heinen on similar charges. The Journal said one of Heinen's attorneys, Cristina Arguedas, said her client didn't backdate and will defend herself. It said Apple and an attorney for Anderson declined to comment on the reported settlement. An Apple probe cleared Chief Executive Steve Jobs of any misconduct in the backdating of stocks at the Cupertino-based maker of computers and music players. While Jobs recommended "favorable" dates for some options, the Apple panel said he was unaware of the accounting implications of his actions and didn't financially benefit from them.
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