Washington sources have stated that An Indian-American man has been charged with insider trading here by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It was stated that Avaneesh Krishnamoorthy, a Vice President in the risk management department of Nomura Securities, a New York-based investment bank, allegedly used the confidential information of a private equity firm’s acquisition to conduct insider trading, the American Bazaar online reported on Wednesday.
He was charged with one count of securities fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $5 million. According to the SEC’s complaint, Krishnamoorthy made approximately $48,000 in illicit profits through insider trading.
Meanwhile the Federal prosecutors said Krishnamoorthy learned through the course of his work that the private equity firm Golden Gate Capital intended to acquire the online analytics and marketing firm Neustar. Krishnamoorthy then began trading in Neustar securities through two brokerages accounts that he allegedly kept hidden from his employer, which had been approached by Golden Gate Capital to finance the transaction, according to the report.
Andrew M. Calamari, Director of the SEC’s New York Regional Office said "as alleged in our complaint, Krishnamoorthy was entrusted with confidential, market-moving information by his employer and he misused it for personal gain". Krishnamoorthy was presented in Manhattan federal court before US Magistrate judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox on Tuesday and acting Manhattan US Attorney Joon Kim said Krishnamoorthy was charged with violating his duty to his company and trading on insider information.
