DX Group shares were falling on Monday after the logistics group responded to a Sunday Times article alluding to a corporate espionage case involving rival Tuffnell Parcel Express.
This morning, DX Group confirmed they had received a claim 10th February and would ‘defend its position robustly. It is alleged DX Group staff attempted to obtain commercially sensitive information from delivery drivers.
DX Group shares were down 7.5% at the time of writing.
DX Group Corporate Governance
The media reports over the weekend and claim from Tuffnells comes after DX Group conducted internal investigations last year and made sweeping changes to their management structure and took disciplinary action against employees.
“Industrial espionage has rarely sounded more prosaic although the consequences for delivery and logistics firm DX, if the claims from Sheffield-based rival Tuffnells are proven at the High Court, could be anything but,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
“According to newspaper reports DX employees, formerly of Tuffnells, conspired to obtain customer service receipts from the latter. The £50 payments offered to ‘Pat’ the delivery driver in exchange for the confidential corporate information make it sound like an off-the-wall episode in the life of Greendale’s favourite postie.”
“DX has put out the expected robust defence and the company has already conducted a corporate governance investigation into the matter which resulted in a shake-up of its senior management and a long suspension for the shares.”
“The company desperately needs to move on from the scandal and continue to capitalise on the progress it made during the pandemic when there was a sizeable increase in demand for parcel deliveries. Previously the company had a chequered history as a listed firm, littered with profit warnings and dividend cuts, so it is important to clean up this mess as soon as it can.”
The company is set to release interim results 27th February.