Vikram Luthar Suspended As CFO As SEC Investigates
India-West News Desk
CHICAGO, IL – Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (ADM), the prominent US agricultural trading giant, has suspended its Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Vikram Luthar and revising its earnings outlook pending an investigation into its accounting practices.
The company announced on January 22 that Vikram Luthar, who had held the position of CFO since 2022, is now suspended amid an inquiry initiated in response to a voluntary document request from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The focus of the investigation is on what ADM has termed “intersegment transactions” related to its nutrition unit, responsible for producing ingredients for both human and animal foods, Fortune reported.
Luthar joined ADM in 2004 as vice president and treasurer. Before ADM, Luthar spent nearly a decade with General Motors in treasury and regional finance leadership positions. He holds a degree in aerospace engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
ADM has been heavily investing in its nutrition business since 2014, with a particular emphasis on diversification through acquisitions. Notably, the company made its largest-ever acquisition in 2014, acquiring European natural ingredient maker Wild Flavors for $3 billion. However, despite significant investments, profits in the nutrition segment have fallen short of initial expectations, attributed to weakened demand, including a decline in plant-based food preferences, as reported by Fortune.
Analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg indicate that the operating income of the nutrition segment was already projected to decline by more than 18% in 2023, reaching its lowest point since 2020.
This incident is not the first scandal involving ADM, as Fortune points out that in the 1990s, the company was implicated in a price-fixing conspiracy, later becoming the basis for the 2009 film “The Informant!” starring Matt Damon. ADM pleaded guilty to the price-fixing charges in 1996. Furthermore, the company is currently responding to a lawsuit that alleges price manipulation in its trading of ethanol.
