Former SEC official traded in stocks
View(s):Complaints have been received by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pertaining to transactions carried out by a former top official, according to sources.
SEC officials are not supposed to trade on shares while holding office and when they do, it has to be communicated to the Commission members for approval.
While the complaint hasn’t been examined as yet, it was established that the said official had changed certain SEC rules to unload some shares while in office, sources close to the SEC told the Business Times. “Apparently he has also traded under a different name with an account maintained at a ‘friendly stockbroker’. One source said, adding that this is illegal.
Another source said that right now, the understanding is that there has been a violation pertaining to such trades. “This is yet to be established, but the authorities are on this trail.”
Earlier when Thilak Karunaratne had held office as Chairman in his first stint nearly two years ago, he had stopped trading of shares he held in listed companies. When contacted, he told the Business Times, “This time too I have completely stopped trading.” But he didn’t want to comment on this particular issue of the former SEC official’s trading.