Priceline Group CEO Darren Huston has resigned, effective immediately, and Priceline named chairman and former CEO Jeffery Boyd as interim president and CEO.
A statement from Priceline said that Huston had resigned "following an investigation overseen by independent members of the board of directors of the facts and circumstances surrounding a personal relationship that Mr. Huston had with an employee of the company who was not under his direct supervision."
"The investigation determined that Mr. Huston had acted contrary to the company's code of conduct and had engaged in activities inconsistent with the board's expectations for executive conduct, which Mr. Huston acknowledged and for which he expressed regret," Priceline stated.
Huston joined Priceline in 2011 as CEO of Booking.com and was promoted to CEO of the company overall in January 2014, replacing Boyd, who had been its top executive since 2002. Huston had continued to hold the title of CEO of Booking.com. President and COO Gillian Tans today was named CEO of that division.
Priceline said an independent committee of the board would begin a search for Huston's successor.
James Guyette, Priceline's lead independent director, said in the statement that "I am satisfied with the Board's thorough review of this issue. The performance of the business under Darren has been strong, and the company is very well positioned to continue executing on its strategy for growth."
Priceline was No. 2 on Travel Weekly's 2015 Power List, with $50.3 billion in sales.
The company plans to report its second-quarter earnings May 4.