Breakaway Solutions Files Chapter 11

Financially ailing Internet consultancy Breakaway Solutions Inc., formerly based in Boston, announced it has filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Breakaway said in a statement that it “intends to stabilize its operations while it seeks purchasers for its
business.”

Less than two weeks ago its president and CEO, William Loftus, resigned, along with senior vice president of professional services, John Loftus.

At the time the company said the board of directors was seeking a buyer or other strategic alternatives.

The company was once a high-flying consultancy with more than 300 employees and offices on Boston’s waterfront. In the past year it moved its headquarters to Maynard, Mass., and then to near Philadelphia, to be closer to its institutional investors.

But as the Internet consulting sector declined in the past year, the company laid off hundreds of employees to shore up its earnings. It has been hit by a slew of shareholder class action lawsuits relating to its IPO.

Shares of Breakaway now trade at around 3 cents. The 52-week high is 38 cents.