US charges Elizabeth Holmes of Theranos with fraud

NEW YORK (AP) — Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford dropout once called the “next Steve Jobs” is being charged with “massive fraud” by U.S. regulators for her actions while leading the blood testing startup Theranos.

Theranos and Holmes agreed Wednesday to settle the case and pay a $500,000 fine. She is barred from serving as an officer or director of a public company for 10 years. The Securities and Exchange Commission said it will take its case against the president of the company, Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, to federal court.

The SEC says Holmes, 34, Theranos, and Balwani misled investors for years about the performance of its blood testing technology. Theranos, based in Palo Alto, California, misled investors for years, once telling them its machines were being used by the Defense Department when they were not.