A Swiss man has been charged with insider trading after allegedly earning millions of francs from confidential merger information shared by an investment banker friend. The man, identified as a consultant, is accused of using his long-standing connection with the banker to exploit confidential details about ongoing or planned mergers and acquisitions.
According to the Office of the Attorney General, the man made significant profits from trades made between 2018 and 2020. He is reported to have earned 10.6 million Swiss francs ($11.3 million) through four successful sets of trades. However, he also incurred a loss of about 1.6 million francs from a failed trade based on a deal that did not come to fruition.
The case highlights Switzerland’s evolving approach to insider trading, with the country historically being more lenient in prosecuting such cases compared to the United States or the United Kingdom. Insider trading was only made a criminal offence in Switzerland in 1988. In a notable 2021 case, a Swiss businessman convicted of insider trading received only a suspended sentence.
The responsibility for prosecuting such cases was moved from cantonal authorities to federal authorities more than a decade ago, enabling stronger collaboration with Switzerland’s financial regulator, Finma, to tackle increasingly complex insider trading activities. The Swiss Attorney General’s office has not disclosed the identity of the accused or the bank where the banker worked, as per Swiss legal procedures. The case has now been passed to the Swiss federal court, which has yet to announce a trial date. As the trial approaches, the identity of the involved bank is expected to be revealed.
