Former Janus Henderson analyst charged in £1.5m insider trading case
The UK’s financial watchdog has launched criminal proceedings against five individuals over claims they used insider information from an analyst at a top asset manager to illegally generate profits of £1.5m.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) claims Redinel Korfuzi, a former analyst at asset manager Janus Henderson, and his associates allegedly used confidential information from Korfuzi to make insider trades.
Janus Henderson is a Canada headquartered asset manager with more than £246bn worth of assets under its management.
Kofuzi’s associates used a network of 49 companies to profit on the insider information by trading on Contracts for Difference (CfD) derivative products, the FCA said in a statement outlining the allegations against the individuals.
In each case, the individuals bet the value of the CfDs would go down following announcements they had insider knowledge of ahead of time, the FCA said.
The insider trades saw the five individuals generate profits of approximately £1.5m from 17 December 2019 to 25 March 2021, the watchdog said.
All five individuals were also charged with money laundering offences relating to over 170 cash deposits worth around £200,000.
All of the individuals involved in the case have indicated not guilty pleas. The case is set to appear at Southwark Crown Court on 22 February.
The FCA said Janus Henderson had fully cooperated with its investigation. Morning Wire approached Janus Henderson for comment.
The FCA’s decision to launch criminal proceedings comes after the watchdog carried out a multi-site search and arrest operation with the Metropolitan Police in March 2021.
Insider trading is punishable by up to ten years in prison while money laundering is punishable by up to 14 years.