Lugano Diamonds CEO Moti Ferder has stepped down as the company faces an internal investigation into financial irregularities its parent company, Compass Diversified (CODI), uncovered.
The departure comes after a CODI-launched probe into US-based Lugano’s inventory financing methods, the Connecticut-based firm said last week. The review, which outside legal counsel and a forensic accounting firm conducted, found preliminary evidence of irregularities in Lugano’s accounting and inventory practices. They were unrelated to its other portfolio companies, CODI emphasized.
As a result of the findings, CODI’s audit committee determined that its 2024 financial statements must be restated and should no longer be considered reliable. The company has delayed filing its first-quarter 2025 report while the investigation continues.
Ferder, who founded Lugano in 2004, will not receive severance compensation. CODI acquired a 60% stake in the luxury jeweler in 2021, at which time the company operated four stores. It has since expanded to 10 locations, including a new boutique in Chicago and a mobile showroom serving the equestrian community.
Joshua Gaynor, a former executive at Bulgari who joined Lugano in 2024 as president, will be interim CEO. He will lead the company alongside chief financial officer Christoph Pachler, who also came aboard last year.
“What has been uncovered through the investigation thus far does not reflect who we are as a business and the values we uphold,” said CODI CEO Elias Sabo. “Our priority is to support the audit committee’s investigation and to fully understand what happened.”
Image: A Lugano boutique in London. (Lugano Diamonds)
