Travel platform Navan's stock has fallen nearly 60% since its $6.2 billion initial public offering (IPO) last autumn. In particular, after releasing its first post-IPO earnings report in December and announcing the departure of Chief Financial Officer Amy Butte, the stock experienced volatility.

Now, the Palo Alto, California-based company faces a proposed class action lawsuit. Plaintiff David McCown filed a lawsuit on February 23, claiming he purchased Navan stock and suffered losses, alleging that potential investors were misled by "materially incomplete" offering documents that failed to adequately warn of emerging negative performance and trends.

The lawsuit names the company, CEO Ariel Cohen, former CFO Amy Butte, Chief Accounting Officer Anne Giviskos, as well as company directors and underwriters as defendants, claiming that some executives and directors signed misleading registration statements related to the IPO.

The core of the lawsuit points to Navan's registration statement and prospectus, which contained historical descriptions of the company's rapid growth. The documents showed that revenue and total bookings grew 33% and 32%, respectively, from 2024 to 2025. However, the lawsuit alleges that on the day of the IPO, the company knew that sales and marketing expenses for the quarter ending October 31 had increased 39% from the previous quarter to $95 million, but investors were not aware of this.

The complaint states: "Navan's stock fell after it reported third-quarter fiscal 2025 results on December 15, 2025, which showed sales and marketing expenses increased 39% from the previous quarter. Navan also unexpectedly announced that its CFO would step down... Following this news, Navan's stock fell nearly 12% on December 16, 2025, closing at $12.90 per share."

In the quarter ending October 31, the company reported a GAAP net loss of $225 million, compared to a net loss of $42 million in the same period last year. According to the announcement at the time, total revenue grew 29% to $195 million.

The lawsuit also alleges that all defendants are liable for the false statements and omissions.

Butte brought Wall Street experience to Navan. According to her LinkedIn profile, early in her career she served as a senior managing director at the now-defunct Bear Stearns, was CFO of the New York Stock Exchange from 2004 to 2006, and served as CFO and strategist for Credit Suisse First Boston's financial services division from 2002 to 2003.

In December, the company said Butte would continue to serve as an advisor to the travel platform until the company appoints a full-time CFO or May 1, while designating Chief Accounting Officer Anne Giviskos as interim CFO. In February, the company appointed Aurélien Nolf, a former executive at ride-hailing company Lyft, to replace Butte, effective March 2.

Navan did not immediately respond to a request for comment.