Oliver Curtis, guilty of insider trading
A Sydney man could face three years behind bars, after he was found guilty for insider trading, following charges by Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC).
Oliver Peter Curtis was found guilty, after a three week trial in the New South Supreme Court found that he allegedly acted on tip offs from John Hartman to make $1 million in profits, said ASIC. ASIC said Curtis traded on 45 separate occasions between 1 May 2007 and 30 June 2008, using a company that he controlled to make those profits, said ASIC.
At the time of the alleged offence Harman was employed as an equities dealer at Orion Asset Management and it was alleged that Hartman and Curtis would trade contracts for difference (CFDs) from Hartman's inside information about Orion's trading intentions, said ASIC.
"In doing so, the pair allegedly sought to take advantage of expected movements in the share price caused by Orion's trading and then share the profits," said ASIC.
In return for providing trading instructions, it was alleged that Curtis would provide Hartman with his share of the profits in cash and use funds to buy items for Hartman, added ASIC.
Curtis' next hearing was due to commence on 17 June 2016. He could face five years imprisonment and or a fine of $220,000, ASIC said.
Hartman previously pleaded guilty to an insider trading offence on 6 April 2010, and was sentenced to three years imprisonment with a single pre-release period of 15 months.
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