The directors of an online grocery marketplace that collapsed before it could list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) have been charged with allegedly providing false or misleading information in a prospectus.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said former Irexchange Limited (IRX) Chief Executive Officer Brett Charlton and former Chief Financial Officer Brett Coventry had been charged with one count of providing false or misleading information to ASIC.
Former IRX Company Secretary and Legal Advisor Anand Sundaraj was charged with two counts of providing false or misleading information to shareholders and the ASX, one count of making a false or misleading statement and one count of aiding and abetting the offences charged against Charlton and Coventry.
“The charges relate to conduct that allegedly occurred between 20 July 2018 and 14 February 2019, concerning an agreement regarding the shares of the founders of IRX and information about the nature of IRX’s business in the prospectus lodged with ASIC,” ASIC said in a media release.
Sundaraj, Charlton and Coventry, who are next due to appear before the Local Court of New South Wales on 29 April 2025, have denied the charges.
The loss making company, which hoped to challenge Metcash in the retail wholesale distribution sector, was beset by litigation and went into administration in 2019 before it could raise new capital and list on the ASX, according to media coverage.
