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Scrutinises legal, ethical and efficiency standards for and against insider trading. The main arguments supporting insider trading are that it promotes economic efficiency and enterprise. The primary argument against insider trading is that it can be a breach of fiduciary duty; the other arguments of asymmetrical information, in‐principle unequal access to information, and misappropriation seem relatively difficult to accept. On balance, it seems that insider trading may possibly be organised in firms so long as policies are transparent, shareholders accept the practice and certain measures are taken to reduce the incidence of free riders. However, the current state of knowledge on the subject makes it very difficult to come to unequivocal conclusions about whether aspects of it should be illegal or not. Much more theoretical and empirical work is needed on the ethical and social foundations of capitalism, insider trading in general, potential conflict of interest between innovators and shareholders, free riders, possible lack of confidence in the market, and in what ways illegality changes the behaviour of agents.

This paper analyzes trading and tipping activities in insider trading litigation decided by federal courts from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2014.

Legal documents from the US Securities and Exchange Commission, LexisNexis and Westlaw databases were coded to determine profile, patterns of trading and settlement outcomes.

Results of statistical analysis indicate that a defendant in both civil and criminal cases is more likely to trade on the information when he/she receives a direct, financial benefit from breaching his/her duty of confidentiality. The defendant tipper is also more likely to pass on the information to a close personal friend, business associate or family member. The average amount of profit of defendants in both civil and criminal proceedings substantially exceeds the average amount of their settlements.

This paper offers support for the rational choice model – insider trading is often based on rational calculations of benefits not only to the defendant but also to his/her family and associates. Although the threat of civil enforcement and criminal proceedings may possibly deter him/her from committing the crime, results indicate that the amounts of settlement in both proceedings are considerably lower than the amount of profits obtained from the offense.

The purpose of this paper is to uncover the essence of insider trading, explain why insider trading law is ineffective and provide implications of the effectiveness of the law.

This conceptual paper offers three propositions. The first two are based on a literature review of 62 articles in empirical research to develop an understanding of the essence of insider trading and identify the areas in which insider trading is ineffective. This analysis is used in the third proposition to provide a direction in suggesting effective measures to improve insider trading law.

The essence of insider trading is that corporate insiders exercise informational monopoly power over their trades. This understanding explains why insider trading law is ineffective because it has not taken away the monopoly power that corporate insiders possess and exercise. This understanding also leads to three antitrust suggestions aimed at improving insider trading law.

The findings may provide assistance to the lawmakers and regulators to make insider trading law more effective and enforcement more simplified.

This paper is of value to other researchers attempting to understand the essence of insider trading and to policymakers concerned about the existence of monopolistic behavior in the equity market and income inequality due to corporate insiders’ trading profit.

The purpose of this paper is to study the effectiveness of insider trading enforcement actions in India and international dimensions.

The research is based on the insider trading regulations and amendments made during the period 1992-2015.

The notable observation of the study is the dearth of insider trading conviction and the paucity of prosecution for insider trading offences in India. It is difficult to resist the conclusion that surveillance and enforcement matter more than the drafting of the relevant statutes and regulations in emerging markets. Whereas, developed countries have a better record of prosecution than emerging markets.

Future research may explore the factors that hinder effective regulation and recommend new methods to increase the impact of Securities and Exchange Board of India insider trading regulation.

The current paper presents guidance for the foreign institutional investors, regulators and market participants on insider trading regulation and prosecution in India.

After reading the case, the students shall be able to explain the concept of insider trading and differentiate between illegal insider trading and legal insider trading, business ethics, financial institutions, financial markets and accounting; to interpret the legal framework for prevention of insider trading; to identify the role and significance of the market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), in detecting financial crimes such as insider trading; to demonstrate the association between information, stock trading and stock prices within the framework of efficient markets; and to appraise the ethical dilemma in a family-owned firm, where the family members of the promoter group are alleged to have indulged in a financial crime.

The case revolves around allegations of insider trading against the promoter and the promoter group of the family owned and controlled firm, Lux Industries Limited. On January 24, 2022, the SEBI, the regulator of securities markets in India, accused Udit Todi, the Executive Director of Lux Industries Limited, of engaging in insider trading through a chain of 14 connected parties. Udit Todi was also the son of the Managing Director, Pradip Kumar Todi, and the nephew of the Executive Chairman, Ashok Kumar Todi. In its interim order, SEBI alleged a breach of insider trading regulations by a group of 14 connected entities that had built up long positions starting from May 21, 2021, before the quarterly financial results (Q4) and the annual results of the financial year (FY) 2021 in the equity shares of Lux Industries Limited, with its registered office in Kolkata, India, were announced. Subsequently, they squared off the long positions to make a profit of ₹29.43m. To restore the confidence of the investors, the Executive Chairman, Ashok Kumar Todi, needed to review the matter expeditiously and impartially. Taking into consideration the family ties of the accused, it was not going to be an easy task, yet, it had to be done. The case highlights the role of the regulator, SEBI, in unearthing financial frauds such as insider trading in an emerging market such as India.

Postgraduate programs in management, Executive education programs.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 1: Accounting and Finance

This paper adds to the scant literature on the tightening of regulations and its impact on the profitability of insider trades by examining the effects of the recent enactment of the Securities Market Amendment Act 2002 in New Zealand. We investigate the abnormal returns around the date of insider transactions both before and after the introduction of this Act. We find that the number of insider transactions decreased just prior to the introduction of the Act; further we observe a marked reduction in the profitability of directors. However, the difference between the pre and post-change returns lacks statistical significance.

The purpose of this chapter is to establish whether director trades provide information to investors about the future prospects of the company they form part of and thus reduce the information asymmetry beyond what is already conveyed in the financial statements.

Director Dealings were dealt with as an investment strategy by looking at past transactions of directors executed between January 2005 and December 2014 on the Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) and evaluating whether there was an increase in returns for investors who copy director trades. The study focused on whether short-term abnormal returns for up to 12 months after the transaction date, being either a buy or a sale, were made by directors in Malta when trading in their own companies.

The results show that in the short-term period of up to 12 months after the transaction date, Maltese directors do transmit information to the market both when they purchase shares in their own companies and also when they sell shares. The interesting fact about the study is that in Malta sale transactions are more valuable to the outsiders than purchase transactions. Apart from this, the results also show that some companies which are listed on the MSE are more indicative as to their future performance than others. It was ultimately concluded that even though there are informational asymmetries between directors in a company and outsiders, an outsider cannot trade solely by following director trades. The implications of the findings are discussed.

This study attempts to determine the level of significance that each insider trade has on the Maltese market, what each director trade conveys to the said market and if these trades are valuable to the outside investors even though such investors do not have knowledge of the grounds upon which the directors trade.

This paper investigates if investors consider legal insider trading data while making investment decisions. If any investment decision is based on insider transactions, then it will result in abnormal stock characteristics. The purpose of this paper is to investigate if insider trading affects stock characteristics like price, return and volume. The paper further investigates the effect on stock characteristics after the trade of different types of insiders and the relationship between abnormal return and abnormal volume.

The study uses the event study method to measure the abnormal price, return and volume. Two-stage least square regression is used to investigate the relationship between abnormal return and abnormal volume.

The insider trades affect price, return and volume. The results are identical for both buy and sell transactions. The trades of different types of insiders have diverse effects on stock characteristics. The trades of substantial shareholders give rise to the highest abnormal price and return, whereas the promoters' trades result in the highest abnormal volume. No relationship is detected between abnormal return and volume.

A novel method to calculate the abnormal price is proposed. The effect of trading of all types of insiders on stock characteristics is analyzed. The relationship between abnormal return and abnormal volume, after an insider trade, is investigated.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the prospects for and some foreseeable consequences of more intensive enforcement action against insider trading in the context of the UK, within the EU and international contexts.

The approach adopted is qualitative, based on the literature and policy papers, examining developments regarding enforcement against insider trading. Explores extent to which regulators are to some extent overcoming their previous ambivalence over enforcement action against insider trading. Examines the Spector judgement from the European Court of Justice. Looks at possible consequences of more robust enforcement on insider trading.

Three possible consequences are outlined. First, some persons contemplating insider trading may be deterred. Second, risk‐tolerant individuals and firms persist with insider trading, whilst taking some obvious precautions, thus shielding their activities against enforcement. Third, creativity and innovation within the largest, most sophisticated and reputationally cautious firms produce new patterns of trading that cannot legally be described as “insider trading”, for example by commissioning research services, as evidence from the USA suggests.

Information asymmetries within the market might not be reduced, rather they could just become less visible to the regulator. These would be mixed results; any regulator with an ambition to be more than reactive to events would already be thinking about the next move.

The financial market crisis and the regulatory deficiencies that it has exposed provoke greater pubic scrutiny, policy changes and critical research in relation to regulation and enforcement. This paper examines aspects of this ongoing process and contributes to it.

The rise in business activities coupled with free trade liberalisation across countries has entailed an increase in securities transaction as well as insider trading (IT). In fact, IT is characterised by the influence and usage of some prior knowledge concerning sensitive information of a corporate body which results in a financial benefit to the insider trader. The practice of IT is not only unethical but also illegal and this statement is witnessed by the mushrooming of laws across the globe categorising IT as an offence. However, the type of punishment varies in different countries depending on various factors. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to assess the adequacy and efficiency of IT laws in the context of a developing country being Mauritius.

To achieve the research objective, the Mauritian laws on IT were compared with the corresponding laws of some developed countries like the USA and the UK. As such, a qualitative research method was adopted. In particular, the black letter approach was used to examine the relevant laws of Mauritius, UK and USA on IT. A comparative analysis was conducted concerning IT laws for each country with the view of suggesting recommendations for Mauritian stakeholders to adopt to enhance the existing legal and regulatory framework on IT.

It was found that Mauritian IT laws are largely inspired from both the US and UK corresponding legislation. However, Mauritian laws need to be strengthened by imposing some more severe penalties in terms of fines and terms of imprisonment like the USA has established. The Mauritian Financial Services Commission as the regulator also needs to play a more active role in disseminating particularities of IT laws, offences and penalties to the civil society at large.

At present, this study will be among the first academic writings on the efficiency of IT laws in Mauritius and also, because existing literature is quite scarce on assessing the adequacy of IT legislation in developing countries, this research aims at filling in the gap in literature. The study is carried out with the aim of combining a large amount of empirical, theoretical and factual information that can be of use to various stakeholders and not only to academics.