To be fair, their failings were almost entirely a result of bad financial projections, resulting in an unstable balance sheet for an otherwise-solid business

Then why not keep the CEO, and replace the CFO?

CEO needs to provide vision based on the financial projection from the CFO.

Because the buck doesn't stop at the CFO

Will the CFO-turned-CEO hire another CFO? Two people at the helm who essentially do math all day doesn’t sound very inspiring.

That's an absurd representation of many things.

They already have a great product. What they don't have is a great balance sheet and income statement. Seems like a bean counter is what they need at the moment.

tidying up the finances for an eventual acquisition. as far as shareholders are concerned, looking as good as possible on paper is priority #1.