Biotech Employee Charged With Insider Trading Ahead of Company’s Announcements About Breast Cancer Drug
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the former senior director of regulatory affairs for Puma Biotechnology with insider trading ahead of the company’s news announcements about its drug to treat breast cancer. The SEC alleges that Robert Gadimian pocketed more than $1.1 million in illicit profits by secretly purchasing Puma stock and short-term call options based on nonpublic information he learned about positive developments in two clinical trials for Puma’s drug, neratinib. Gadimian allegedly bought Puma securities before the results from the first trial were announced in December 2013 and again before the results of the second trial…
Read MoreSEC: Casino-Gaming Company Retaliated Against Whistleblower
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that casino-gaming company International Game Technology (IGT) has agreed to pay a half-million dollar penalty for firing an employee with several years of positive performance reviews because he reported to senior management and the SEC that the company's financial statements might be distorted. In its second whistleblower retaliation case since the Dodd-Frank Act authorized the agency to bring such charges, the SEC found that the employee was removed from significant work assignments within weeks of raising concerns about the company's cost accounting model. He was terminated approximately three months later. "Strong enforcement…
Read MoreOch-Ziff Hedge Fund Settles FCPA Charges
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Och-Ziff Capital Management Group has agreed to pay nearly $200 million to the SEC to settle civil charges of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA). Och-Ziff CEO Daniel S. Och agreed to pay nearly $2.2 million to settle SEC charges that he caused certain violations along with CFO Joel M. Frank, who also agreed to settle the charges. The SEC detected the misconduct while proactively scrutinizing the way that financial services firms were obtaining investments from sovereign wealth funds overseas. The SEC’s subsequent investigation of Och-Ziff found that the fund used…
Read MoreSEC Announces Agenda for October 5 Meeting of the Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the agenda for the October 5 meeting of its Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies. The committee will discuss Regulation S‑K disclosure requirements, research regarding corporate board diversity, and outreach to smaller companies about capital raising. It also will receive updates from the Division of Trading and Markets on equity market structure initiatives, a tick-size pilot, and the treatment of so-called “finders” that assist companies in capital raising activities. The October 5 meeting will begin at 9:30 a.m. in the multipurpose room at the SEC’s headquarters at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington,…
Read MoreJane Norberg Named Chief of SEC Whistleblower Office
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Jane Norberg has been promoted to chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower. Ms. Norberg joined the SEC in 2012 as the first deputy chief of the Office of the Whistleblower and helped establish the office, which intakes and reviews whistleblower tips received by the agency, evaluates whistleblower award claims, and makes recommendations on whether claimants have satisfied eligibility requirements to receive an award. Ms. Norberg has served as acting chief since the departure of the office’s inaugural chief Sean McKessy. “In its short history, our whistleblower program…
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