Latest news with #Mah
Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Silicon Beach exec alleges ‘shake down' by investor ousted during #MeToo era
A Silicon Beach entrepreneur and her investor are suing each other — part of a growing legal brawl that includes a dispute over a private jet, claims of a lesbian workplace affair and allegations of a sexual assault in a West Hollywood hotel. On May 14, Mahway founder Jessica Mah sued D Global Ventures Chief Executive Justin Caldbeck in Los Angeles Superior Court, saying he groped her and repeatedly solicited her for sex, then attempted extortion and defamed her to other investors when she rejected him. Hours after Mah's claim was docketed, Caldbeck filed his own suit, saying Mah 'seduced investors' with false promises and used money she raised to prop up her 'ersatz glamorous lifestyle' — including spending company cash on a private jet. 'Justin Caldbeck's claims collapse under the weight of the very documents he read, approved, and signed,' a spokesman for Mah said. 'Jessica Mah will not be intimidated. We expect the court to deliver a penalty to Caldbeck as substantial as his gross misconduct.' A spokesperson for Caldbeck, Sallie Hofmeister, countered with a statement that called Mah's lawsuit 'nothing more than a calculated effort ... to distract from credible accusations that they have misused millions of dollars of investor funds.' 'Nearly a year ago, she explicitly threatened to weaponize past allegations against Mr. Caldbeck if he pursued legal claims related to fraud and embezzlement against her,' Hofmeister said. Mah has maintained a jet-piloting, Lamborghini-racing, party-DJ persona on Instagram and tech industry podcasts. Caldbeck became an early face of Silicon Valley's #MeToo reckoning when he issued a public apology and left the company he co-founded after multiple Asian American entrepreneurs accused him of sexual misconduct in 2017. Their court battle — one of the ugliest to hit L.A.'s tech scene in years — erupted at a moment of cultural crisis for the industry. Many companies have abandoned efforts to root out 'bro culture,' with polarizing figures such as Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg embracing President Trump's anti-woke agenda. At the same time, economic uncertainty has led to mass layoffs and forced companies to do away with luxurious perks for employees. How Mah spends her company's money and treats her team is the focus of other ongoing litigation. On May 15, two former Mahway employees — ex-President Walter Delph and William Mulholland, who served as chief financial officer — sued her for wrongful termination and whistleblower retaliation. Both are represented by Caldbeck's longtime lawyer, Ivo Labar. All three of the lawsuits filed against Mah allege that she 'holds herself out as a 'unicorn breeder,'' using an industry term for companies valued at more than $1 billion. 'In reality, Mah is a charlatan living on investors funds intended for Mahway's portfolio of startup companies, the majority of which are only 'unicorns' in the sense that they are also imaginary,' Caldbeck and Mulholland's suits both claim. The men's complaints accuse Mah of using company funds for personal expenses and structuring investment payouts to unfairly benefit her. Mahway is operated out of her rented West Hollywood mansion, with the company footing the bill, the suits allege. Mah said on a recent podcast appearance that the rental cost is $16,500 per month. Delph additionally accused Mah of age discrimination and sexual harassment, claiming she called him an 'old man' and carried on a public affair with Mahway founding partner Andrea Barrica — a relationship both women deny. According to Delph's suit, Mah 'would rub Barrica's upper inner thighs' during company meetings. That allegation is similar to one Mah leveled against Caldbeck. In her May 14 lawsuit, she alleged he 'touched the upper-most part of [her] thigh and put his hand next to her genitalia,' during a business meeting at the Pendry Hotel in 2022. Caldbeck's spokeswoman Hofmeister, who also represents Delph, called Mah's claims 'nothing more than a smokescreen to deflect attention' from the fraud allegations being leveled against her. 'Ms. Mah's lawsuit is meritless and the latest example of her bullying tactics,' Hofmeister said. Mah fired back at Delph on May 15 with a raft of civil conspiracy charges, filing a suit that alleged he colluded with Caldbeck and Mulholland to smear her and 'shake down' the company. The three men say their suits were filed independently of one another. Mulholland said he was forced to resign this year 'in order to avoid engaging in illegal activities at Mah's direction,' according to his May 15 suit. Barrica has also jumped into the fray, accusing Caldbeck of sexual harassment and extortion in a lawsuit filed May 20. Barrica claims he repeatedly tried to climb on top of her and kiss her in an Uber after a business meeting in Paris. The Mahway executive says Caldbeck tried to 'leverage his repulsive behavior by threatening to spread objectively false allegations that Ms. Barrica was in a sexual and romantic relationship' with Mah. Barrica alleges Caldbeck pressured her to join his 'unhinged and baseless campaign to destroy Ms. Mah.' According to Barrica's complaint — filed by Mah's longtime lawyer— when Mah learned of the alleged incident, she confided about her own experiences with Caldbeck. The two women agreed to try to maintain a professional relationship with the investor while limiting contact, Barrica's suit said. That seemed to work until a blowup over executive payouts in September. Days before the first complaints were filed in the spring, Barrica reached out to Caldbeck 'to make one last appeal for peace,' according to her complaint. By Barrica's account, the truce offer didn't go over well. 'Even if Jess said that I raped her, I wouldn't care,' Caldbeck said, according to Barrica's suit. 'My investors wouldn't care either.' According to Mulholland's and Delph's suits, Caldbeck's spat with Mah over payouts led the executives to probe the company's operations. Both said in their claims they concluded she was bilking investors. Delph contends in his complaint that he was fired after raising those concerns to his boss. Mulholland felt forced to resign amid growing fear he would be left holding the bag for Mah's misdeeds, per his suit. Caldbeck's suit said his investment company has 'suffered millions of dollars in damages' from Mahway's mismanagement. His spokeswoman said he looks forward to setting the record straight. 'Mr. Caldbeck is confident the truth will continue to emerge and Ms. Mah's allegations will be shown for what they are,' Hofmeister said.
Global News
7 days ago
- General
- Global News
Surrey home destroyed by fire, family displaced
A two-alarm fire ripped through a home in Surrey on Monday night. Firefighters were called to 66A Avenue near 180th Street just before 9 p.m. The home was fully engulfed in flames when crews arrived and the fast-moving fire sent neighbours scurrying. All residents inside the burning home and tenants in the basement made it out safely. Security camera footage from neighbour George Mah shows there was a bang at first and then, shortly after, flames started shooting out of the garage and the family ran for safety. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'That's what first got the homeowner's attention,' Mah said. 'She heard the noise, went to look, and then as soon as she checked in the garage, yeah, she saw the flames and the smoke.' Story continues below advertisement The side panelling of Mah's home melted but no other neighbouring homes were damaged. 'It was an amazing call by the first-in captain on scene to send one of the second-in trucks around to the street behind and start attacking the fire from the backside and protecting the structures and cooling them,' Surrey Fire Service assistant Chief Greg Robbie said at the scene. Fire investigators remained on the scene on Tuesday, paying close attention to the BMW electric vehicle that was parked in the driveway. The vehicle was completely burnt out and the charging connector was still plugged into the car. 'Going to determine what the cause was and point of origin possibly,' Robbie said. 'We wouldn't speculate at this time because everything was on fire when we arrived.' Neighbours told Global News that the homeowners are staying with relatives nearby as they deal with the aftermath of this blaze.
The Star
25-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Vietnamese nationals get help with spouse visas
Erasing language barriers: (Seated, second from left to right) Wa, Dr Mah and Truong showing copies of the bilingual guideline during a press conference at Wisma Perak MCA, Ipoh. IPOH: Perak MCA Youth has introduced a bilingual guideline to assist Vietnamese nationals married to Malaysians in applying for a spouse visa. Perak MCA Youth chief Daniel Wa said the initiative followed numerous complaints from both locals and their Vietnamese spouses about the complex application process. 'The Malaysia-Vietnam Friendship Association (MVFA) has also faced such issues, and it's challenging to provide individual guidance each time,' he told a press conference at Wisma MCA Perak on Friday. 'To address this, we have created a dual-language guideline in Vietnamese and Bahasa Malaysia to make it more accessible.' Wa highlighted that many Vietnamese applicants face issues such as exorbitant fees, and reliance on middlemen or websites to get the visas. 'Some paid up to RM8,000 and still didn't receive the correct visa, while others resorted to illegal means,' he said, adding that the guideline aims to simplify the process for them. About 1,000 copies have been printed and are available for RM20 each at Wisma MCA Perak, the Kampar MCA office and the Shake & Bake Cafe in Ipoh. MCA deputy president Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon praised Wa and Perak MVFA chairman Kelly Truong for their efforts. The book, he said, is not only a guide on visa procedures but also includes cultural insights and religious customs of Malaysia's three major ethnic groups. Dr Mah added that Wa is considering similar guides for other nationalities, depending on demand. 'There is a significant number of Vietnamese women married to Malaysians, especially in the Kinta Valley,' said Dr Mah, who is also Perak MCA chairman. 'Adjusting to a new country can be stressful, especially when dealing with socio-economic and family challenges.' Truong herself faced similar difficulties when she got married in Malaysia, and now helps by teaching Bahasa Malaysia to fellow Vietnamese nationals. 'In some unfortunate cases, those unable to cope ended up leaving the country, which can lead to further social issues,' said Dr Mah.
Business Insider
17-05-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
LA businesswoman and an investor with #MeToo past file dueling lawsuits
Los Angeles entrepreneur and investor Jessica Mah is embroiled in bitter legal disputes with two former executives of her company and with D Global Ventures, a firm led by Justin Caldbeck, a prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist who admitted to sexually harassing female investors in 2017. In a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court this week, Mah accused Caldbeck of sexually harassing her and of seeking to defame her over a dispute about an investment he made in a corporate entity she controlled. Meanwhile, in three separate lawsuits, two ex-senior executives at Mah's investment firm Mahway — former CFO William Mulholland and former president Walter Delph — as well as Caldbeck's firm DGV, made a wide array of allegations against Mah. These include claims from all three that she misappropriated company funds, including to pay for a new private jet and trips to Burning Man; claims by Delph of inappropriate sexual conversations in the workplace and discriminatory comments about older workers; and claims from Mulholland of a concealed romantic relationship between Mah and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. Mah, who says she has been programming since middle school, was featured on Forbes' "30 under 30" list in 2012 and was on the front page of Inc magazine in 2015. She founded inDinero, a fintech startup that created a financial dashboard for businesses, and then her VC firm called Mahway, which she has called a "venture builder. Caldbeck, who also worked at Bain Capital Ventures and Lightspeed Ventures, resigned from the fund he founded, Binary Capital, in 2017 after a group of women shared accusations of sexual harassment. Caldbeck admitted to his inappropriate behavior toward female founders and investors. In a statement Friday, Mah said she had spent months trying to resolve the dispute with Caldbeck privately before filing suit. "I recognize the risks and backlash that may follow, and I've made peace with the consequences," she said. "This is not a step I take lightly. I believe in doing business with transparency, accountability, and clarity — and I will always stand up for those values, regardless of how uncomfortable it may be." In an emailed statement, Caldbeck spokesperson Sallie Hofmeister denied the claims of sexual misconduct. "Mr. Caldbeck never made sexual advances toward Ms. Mah," she wrote. In her complaint, Mah alleges that Caldbeck sexually harassed her in 2022. "After consuming several drinks during a business meeting at the restaurant at the Pendry Hotel in West Hollywood, California, Mr. Caldbeck touched the upper-most part of Ms. Mah's thigh and put his hand next to her genitalia," the complaint says. It goes on to allege that Caldbeck repeatedly asked Mah if she was sexually interested in him and discussed his sexual relationships with other women. Mah alleges in the suit that Caldbeck misled his own investors about the nature of his investment in one of her entities, and then "screamed at her and demanded she immediately pay him three times his initial investment." When she refused, the suit says, he told her that "I'm going to destroy you" and defamed her to others. Her complaint alleges extortion, sexual harassment, and defamation, among other claims. All three cases against Mah, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday and Thursday by San Francisco-based law firm Sawyer & Labar LLC, accuse her of improperly using company funds to pay for her personal life. The claims variously include leasing a Lamborghini, vacation trips to Burning Man and Park City, covering rent for her home, paying for personal chefs and landscaping services, and paying for a personal jet despite employees' objections. Hofmeister, also a spokesperson for Mulholland and Delph, declined to comment on their lawsuits. "Mah is more interested in living an ersatz glamorous lifestyle than investing," the DGV complaint read. "The result of Mah's dereliction of duty was predictable for the Company and its investors: investments were not as fruitful, making no real progress, while Mah seduced investors with misleading and often contradictory representations in quarterly investor reports." Delph's complaint alleges that workers were required to work from Mah's home, and that her friends and sexual partners would visit during the workday and walk around "in various stages of undress." Mah would talk about sexual encounters with her employees, amounting to sexual harassment, the suit says. Delph also alleges that Mah called him an "old man" and "ridiculed" him because of his age. Mulholland's complaint alleges that an investor in Mahway complained that Mah had been "concealing her former sexual relationship with Eric Schmidt, the largest Mahway investor and former CEO of Google, in order to make Mahway appear like a legitimate investment opportunity." A spokesperson for Schmidt declined to comment on the purported relationship. DGV's complaint claims that Mah "misled" the firm into falsely believing that Schmidt's family office had invested in Mahway. However, Schmidt's spokesperson said this is false, and that Schmidt was indeed an investor. Delph claims to have been fired after raising concerns to Mah internally at a management meeting, while Mulholland's suit says he felt forced to resign because Mah "was ordering him to break the law by concealing and/or misrepresenting material facts while engaging in general solicitation of investors in an unregistered security." The claims in Delph's complaint include whistleblower retaliation, wrongful termination, age discrimination and sexual harassment. Mulholland claims constructive discharge and whistleblower retaliation, among other claims. And DGV's claims include breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, civil theft, and sale of unregistered securities. Additional reporting by Jack Newsham.
Business Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
‘Nationalisation not on the cards': SingPost CFO
[SINGAPORE] Singapore Post (SingPost) on Thursday (May 15) ruled out the possibility of a nationalisation of the postal service provider, even as it said it is working with the Singapore government to come up with an operating model that is profitable and sustainable. 'Nationalisation is not on the cards,' said SingPost group chief financial officer Isaac Mah at a media briefing following the release of its earnings for the full year ended Mar 31. 'The government acknowledges that right now we do not have a sustainable operating model, especially for the post office network, and we are engaging them on correcting that model so that it's sustainable,' he added. Mah said that this could involve changes in what is required on the ground in terms of the postal network. Another option, he added, could be an increase in postal rates. 'That is definitely one of the potential outcomes in this dialogue with the government,' Mah said. 'But I do not want to run ahead of myself… and at this point, we do not have any concrete details to share.' BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up He added: 'We are looking at all options.' Meanwhile, amid a cloudy global economic outlook marked by ongoing trade tensions, SingPost on Thursday also announced that it has 'reintegrated' its international cross-border business into the Singapore postal and logistics business. 'Given the challenging environment and the risks around the geopolitical tensions, we've decided to move away from the space and refocus on our core competencies here in Singapore,' Mah explained. The cross-border business will continue to be part of SingPost's product offering, leveraging the international postal network. SingPost said that this is 'to achieve business synergies and drive operational efficiencies'. 'The operating environment does look challenging, and the management is very conscious of it. We are keeping an eye on it, which is why we have proposed the restructure, or the reintegration of International into Singapore, so that we can unlock savings there,' Mah said. 'On top of that, we are continuing to invest in key areas like sortation because that will create advantages for us and optimised margins as well.' To this end, SingPost has invested S$30 million in a new automation system to expand processing capacity for small parcels at the Regional eCommerce Logistics Hub facility. At the same time, following the divestment of its Australian business, Mah noted that SingPost is now in a net cash position. 'We've actually strengthened our balance sheet to a position where we can then refocus and grow in Singapore,' he added. Earnings disappointment amid headwinds Shares of SingPost closed 11.8 per cent or S$0.075 lower at S$0.56 on Thursday, after the group reported an underlying net loss of S$461,000 for the second half-year ended Mar 31, from its net profit of S$28.1 million in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, revenue was down 12.1 per cent at S$387.5 million for the half-year period, from S$440.6 million previously. H2 net profit surged 232.7 per cent to S$222.5 million, from S$66.9 million in the corresponding year-ago period. However, this was mainly due to the recording of an exceptional gain from the divestment of its Australia business. The gain of S$222.2 million comprises largely of a gain on disposal of SingPost Australia Investments of S$302.1 million, as well as fair-value gains on properties of S$15.2 million. This was partially offset by impairment charges of S$79.6 million, primarily for Quantium Solutions. On Apr 16, SingPost and Alibaba agreed to unwind their respective minority cross-shareholdings on Quantium Solutions. The logistics company was majority-owned by SingPost, which paid Alibaba S$36.9 million for its stake. SingPost proposed a special dividend of S$0.09 a share, following the divestment of SingPost Australia Investments. The date payable and record date will be announced later. Earnings per share (EPS) stood at S$0.0989 including distribution to perpetual securities holders, from S$0.0297. Excluding the distribution, EPS stood at S$0.0965, up from S$0.0273. For the full year, net profit jumped 212.9 per cent year on year to S$245.1 million from S$78.3 million. Revenue was down 7.5 per cent at S$813.7 million, from S$879.2 million. Underlying net profit fell 40.3 per cent to S$24.8 million, from S$41.5 million the previous year. By segment SingPost's operating profit in H2 for its Singapore postal and logistics segment fell 55.5 per cent year on year to S$7.4 million, from S$16.6 million. The group noted that the post office network remained unprofitable. But in its property segment, operating profit for the period was up 17.8 per cent at S$24.5 million from S$20.8 million previously. This came largely from higher rental income from SingPost Centre. SingPost's international business posted a wider operating loss of S$5.3 million, from S$559,000 in the previous year, attributable to challenging business conditions in the cross-border business. Its freight-forwarding business posted an operating profit of S$12 million, up 31 per cent from S$9.2 million, as the group benefited from higher sea freight rates.
