Lottery.com is a company that’s been in turmoil for the past few months and all that chaos culminated this week when the Nasdaq Stock Market de-listed the company from its exchanges. The company’s struggles leading up to the extinction-level event read like a business-focused Mexican tele novella with the unfortunate aspect of having a real impact on real people.
Lottery.com’s drama began last summer when the company’s former Chief Revenue Officer admitted to a little mistake on the company’s financials. It turns out the company didn’t have nearly as much cash on hand as the now-former Chief Revenue Officer suggested in filings to the Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC). Bad things started happening from there, like the inability to make payroll. Not surprisingly, plenty of employees headed for the exit when that news broke and the company was rife with infighting.
The implosion of Lottery.com reads like an episode of the hit drama Sucession with plenty of in-fighting, allies being named to boards of directors, new financiers and a general sense of chaos. When new investors were brought in in September, they wanted their own people on the board, and moved fast to make it happen. All of this was too much for outgoing Lottery.com board member board member Naila Chowdry.
Chowdry outlined her concerns for the company in a letter to company officials after her dismissal in February after being named to head the company in November. “Generally, what I have observed is that the behaviour of the board’s chairman and his special advisor Piriyev, have repeatedly demonstated an underlying, unstated self-interest in taking control of the company in conflict with the interests of the company’s shareholders and potentially to the advantage of Woodford and possibly other parties undisclosed. I won’t be a part of it.”
Lottery.com officials have denied any wrongdoing and say that the Nasdaq de-listing due to compliance issues.
Either way, it’s certainly a difficult time to be an investor or employee of Lottery.com.