Lawrence Jones, the boss of Manchester tech firm UKFast, has stepped down as CEO following sexual misconduct allegations that he strongly denies.
His wife, Gail Jones, managing director and co-founder of the business he launched from his home in 1999, will assume the role of CEO.
The changes at the top follow claims published by the Financial Times last week.
The company said it “acknowledges the serious allegations recently made in a national newspaper and is conducting an internal investigation.”
The 51-year-old has strenuously denied the claims branding them ‘false and malicious’.
In a statement released via his lawyer announcing his decision to step down as CEO of UKFast, Mr Jones said: “I have decided to step down as CEO of UKFast and take a leave of absence.
“A number of false and malicious allegations have been made against me and I am absolutely determined to ensure that they are fully investigated so that my name can be cleared.
“The interests of the employees, clients and investors in the business are paramount and much more important than any one individual.
“In the meantime, I am confident that the business will continue to grow and prosper.”
The tech company employs around 400 people at its headquarters in Hulme.
The company had £50m turnover last year with profits of more than £7m. It provides cloud hosting solutions to more than 5,000 small and medium enterprises.
Jones and his wife each own 30.9 per cent in the company, with UKFast having sold a 31.6 per cent stake to Inflexion Private Equity last year in a deal valuing the software company at £405m.
