401(k) Firms Human Interest and Guideline Accused of Corporate Espionage

A lawsuit filed in Utah federal court alleges a coordinated scheme by executives and employees of 401(k) management company Guideline to steal confidential information from competitor Human Interest.

According to the complaint, brothers Brandon and Brian Sterri, while employed at Human Interest, allegedly funneled partnership leads, customer data, and internal strategy documents to Guideline’s CEO Kevin Busque and CFO Steven Wu. Texts included in the lawsuit reportedly show Brandon Sterri stating, “We are going to tear apart HI. It’s going to be the easiest thing to do,” on January 29. The alleged operation, dubbed the “Sterri Takeover,” involved downloading sensitive files and emailing them to personal accounts, sometimes bypassing company security measures by logging into personal email on work laptops.

Guideline denies the allegations. A spokesperson stated, “Guideline believes allegations in this lawsuit are false and without merit. We are vigorously defending ourselves and we look forward to presenting the facts and showing that these claims are unfounded.” The lawsuit further claims that after Human Interest sent cease-and-desist letters, Guideline allegedly attempted to leverage its pending acquisition by payroll giant Gusto, threatening to call off the $600 million deal if Human Interest pursued the litigation. Gusto has stated the deal has not yet closed and they are not involved in the allegations.

The case highlights increasing tensions within the competitive financial technology sector, following similar accusations of corporate espionage between HR software companies Rippling and Deel. The outcome of this case could significantly impact the landscape of the 401(k) administration market.

Officials stated that Guideline will vigorously defend itself in court, and Human Interest is seeking damages for the alleged theft of trade secrets.