Autonomy wins SEC contract

AUTONOMY, the Cambridge-based software company, has been chosen by the US Securities and Exchange Commission to provide its next generation of software to monitor compliance by companies on American stock exchanges.

The deal is thought to be worth around $1m (£590,000) and comes as the SEC tightens its own rules and those governing companies and investors after a series of high-profile scandals.

Autonomy's hope is that since the regulator has chosen its Aungate system so too will the regulated companies, fund managers and investment banks.

Chief executive Mike Lynch said: 'Aungate will allow investigators to move into a company and suck up every document and email which is there for their investigation at a time when every second counts. The SEC contract makes us the industry standard in this field.'

The news came as Autonomy reported strong third-quarter figures. The company gave a positive update at the start of this month and today's 98% rise in pre-tax profits to $1.6m for the three months ended September was at the high end of expectations. Revenues rose by 13% to $13m.

Lynch said: 'The end of the third quarter saw a significant recovery in activity levels across our markets, which has continued into the fourth quarter, although we believe it is premature to judge the fragility or robustness of this effect.'

Autonomy's cash balances came down slightly during the quarter to $102m , reflecting the fact that it spent $14m on the acquisition of Virage - a video searching software company - and spent another $4m buying back its own shares.

New business wins during the quarter included America's National Baseball Association, France Telecom, the German government, Watson Wyatt and the Chinese national Library of Science.