Fujitsu has seen $1 billion wiped off its market value after a week in the political and media spotlight for its role in the UK’s Post Office Horizon scandal, which prompted the European chief exec to say the company was morally responsible for providing compensation.

According to Bloomberg, shares fell 4 percent by the time the Tokyo stock exchange had closed. The Japanese firm has seen its value cut by 8 percent since the beginning of 2024.

The most recent move in valuation follows an admission by Paul Patterson, director of Fujitsu Services Ltd and Fujitsu European CEO, that the company bore a moral obligation to contribute to compensating the victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal, which saw 736 managers of local Post Office branches wrongfully convicted of fraud when errors in the system were to blame. More victims are expected to come forward.

Speaking to members of the UK parliament earlier this week, Patterson said: "We were involved from the very start. We did have bugs and errors in the system. And we did help the Post Office in their prosecutions of the subpostmasters [and for] that we are truly sorry."

He said the extent to which the company should contribute to compensation should be determined when the ongoing statutory inquiry finishes.

Meanwhile, Takahito Tokita, Fujitsu’s global chief executive, was asked by the BBC if he would apologize for the company’s role in the Horizon scandal. "Yes, of course," he said.

Since UK television company ITV broadcast its drama depicting the story of the Horizon scandal, the country's politicians and mainstream media have begun to focus in on the issue.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has promised to speed up the process of exonerating Post Office employees wrongfully convicted as well as the compensation process.

The Japanese supplier's role in government contracts has also come under the spotlight. The Financial Times calculated that Fujitsu had won £4.9 billion ($6.25 billion) - jointly and as sole bidder - since the courts ruled the Horizon system was not robust in December 2019. Meanwhile, Sky News announced Fujitsu had won £6.8 billion ($8.68 billion) in public contracts since 2012, also working with Tussell.

Some MPs have called on Fujitsu to contribute to compensation, while others have called for it to be banned from winning public sector work in the UK. ®

https://www.theregister.com//2024/01/18/fujitsu_gets_1_billion_market/