Galleon Group

NEW YORK — A woman accused of using passion to fuel insider trading pleaded guilty to federal charges yesterday, tearfully admitting that she shared tips about public companies with others in the hedge fund industry. The investigation that resulted in Danielle Chiesi’s arrest has led to an ever widening ongoing federal probe of insider trading. Chiesi, 45, entered the plea in US District Court in Manhattan to three charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud. “By crossing the lines on these occasions I ruined a 20-year career,’’ Chiesi said as she clutched a small...

A lawyer for Goldman Sachs investment banker Matthew Korenberg confirmed Thursday that his client is the subject of a long-running probe by federal prosecutors in California. But attorney John Hueston said the probe of Korenberg is unrelated to high-profile insider-trading prosecutions in New York centered around the defunct Galleon Group hedge fund. The investigation of Korenberg involves allegations of insider trading related to a health care deal, according to another person familiar with the case.

NEW YORK - Federal prosecutors in California are investigating whether a Goldman Sachs executive leaked confidential information about two publicly traded companies to Raj Rajaratnam, the convicted hedge fund manager. The previously undisclosed criminal inquiry emerged during a pretrial hearing Thursday in the case of Rajat K. Gupta, the former Goldman director. Gupta is accused of telling Rajaratnam about secret boardroom discussions at Goldman and Procter & Gamble, where he also served on the board.

NEW YORK - Federal prosecutors in California are investigating whether a Goldman Sachs executive leaked confidential information about two publicly traded companies to Raj Rajaratnam, the convicted hedge fund manager. The previously undisclosed criminal inquiry emerged during a pretrial hearing Thursday in the case of Rajat K. Gupta, the former Goldman director. Gupta is accused of telling Rajaratnam about secret boardroom discussions at Goldman and Procter & Gamble, where he also served on the board.

E ven on a Saturday, the conferences that Dr. Leslie Fang attended in New York for MedaCorp, a Boston firm that provides investors with industry insight from medical professionals, were packed. A renowned kidney specialist and physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, Fang with other prominent physicians would dish on the latest treatments and research - information fund managers in the audience hoped would provide an edge when investing in health care. Still consulting intermittently for MedaCorp, Fang is amazed at the people who interrupted weekends for the briefings.

NEW YORK - Galleon Group cofounder Raj Rajaratnam, who was found guilty of all 14 criminal counts against him by a jury in May, lost a bid to have his convictions thrown out. US District Judge Richard Holwell in Manhattan denied Rajaratnam's request for a post-trial acquittal, ruling that prosecutors presented sufficient evidence of conspiracy and securities fraud for the jury to convict. Holwell's ruling was dated Aug. 11 and filed yesterday. Prosecutors from the office of US Attorney Preet Bharara have called Rajaratnam the most "egregious violator" of insider-trading laws...

SAN FRANCISCO - IBM Corp. put a top executive on leave yesterday after he was charged in an insider trading scandal for allegedly leaking secrets about IBM’s earnings and financial dealings with corporate partners. The company said Robert Moffat, 53, a senior vice president who was considered a possible candidate to succeed CEO Sam Palmisano, no longer serves as an IBM officer. A woman who answered the phone at Moffat’s home said he would not comment. Rodney Adkins, who has been senior vice president in charge of development and manufacturing, will fill Moffat’s...

NEW YORK — A former business school classmate of a onetime billionaire hedge fund boss took a starring role yesterday at an insider trading trial, testifying he agreed to accept $500,000 annually eight years ago to reveal secrets about public companies to his friend. Anil Kumar, 52, of Saratoga, Calif., testified at the trial of Raj Rajaratnam, supporting government claims Rajaratnam was willing to break the law to get an edge for his Galleon Group hedge funds. Kumar, who worked for McKinsey & Co. more than 23 years before his 2009 arrest, pleaded guilty to...

A lawyer for Goldman Sachs investment banker Matthew Korenberg confirmed Thursday that his client is the subject of a long-running probe by federal prosecutors in California. But attorney John Hueston said the probe of Korenberg is unrelated to high-profile insider-trading prosecutions in New York centered around the defunct Galleon Group hedge fund. The investigation of Korenberg involves allegations of insider trading related to a health care deal, according to another person familiar with the case.

NEW YORK — The second trial to result from a massive investigation into insider trading at hedge funds ended yesterday with the conviction of a trio of Wall Street traders on charges they paid hefty bribes to coax confidential information out of shady lawyers. A jury reached the verdict against stock trader Zvi Goffer and two others in federal court in Manhattan after deliberating five days since June 2. It came a month after the conviction of Raj Rajaratnam, the onetime billionaire who founded the Galleon Group of hedge funds and who was once Goffer’s...

E ven on a Saturday, the conferences that Dr. Leslie Fang attended in New York for MedaCorp, a Boston firm that provides investors with industry insight from medical professionals, were packed. A renowned kidney specialist and physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, Fang with other prominent physicians would dish on the latest treatments and research - information fund managers in the audience hoped would provide an edge when investing in health care. Still consulting intermittently for MedaCorp, Fang is amazed at the people who interrupted weekends for the briefings.

NEW YORK - Federal prosecutors are expected to file criminal charges today against Rajat K. Gupta, the most prominent business executive ensnared in an aggressive insider trading investigation, according to people briefed on the case. The case against Gupta, 62, who is expected to surrender to the authorities today, would extend the reach of the government's inquiry into America's most prestigious corporate boardrooms. Most of the defendants charged with insider trading over the past two years have plied their trade exclusively on Wall Street.

NEW YORK - Fallen hedge fund billionaire Raj Rajaratnam received the longest-ever prison sentence for insider trading yesterday, a watershed moment in the government's aggressive two-year campaign to root out the illegal exchange of confidential information on Wall Street. Judge Richard J. Holwell sentenced Rajaratnam, the former head of the Galleon Group hedge fund, to 11 years in prison. He was also fined $10 million. A jury convicted him of securities fraud and conspiracy in May after a two-month trial.

NEW YORK - Galleon Group cofounder Raj Rajaratnam, who was found guilty of all 14 criminal counts against him by a jury in May, lost a bid to have his convictions thrown out. US District Judge Richard Holwell in Manhattan denied Rajaratnam's request for a post-trial acquittal, ruling that prosecutors presented sufficient evidence of conspiracy and securities fraud for the jury to convict. Holwell's ruling was dated Aug. 11 and filed yesterday. Prosecutors from the office of US Attorney Preet Bharara have called Rajaratnam the most "egregious violator" of...

NEW YORK - Galleon Group co founder Raj Rajaratnam is the most "egregious violator" of insider-trading laws ever to be caught and should spend as long as 24 years and five months in prison, US prosecutors said. Lawyers for Rajaratnam, in a separate court filing yesterday, asked the judge for a prison term "substantially below" what federal guidelines recommend. His attorneys cited Rajaratnam's poor health, urging US District Judge Richard Holwell in Manhattan not to force their client to die in prison.

NEW YORK - Galleon Group cofounder Raj Rajaratnam asked a federal judge for a prison term "substantially below" what US guidelines recommend for the hedge fund manager convicted of running the biggest insider-trading ring in a generation. Rajaratnam, 54, faces as long as 19 ½ years in prison, prosecutors said in May when he was convicted of all 14 criminal counts of conspiracy and securities fraud. He's scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 27 by US District Judge Richard Holwell in Manhattan.

NEW YORK - A former director of a global management consulting firm pleaded guilty yesterday to securities fraud charges, admitting making $2.6 million by feeding inside stock information to one of America’s richest men in history’s largest hedge-fund insider trading case. Anil Kumar, 51, of Saratoga, Calif., entered the plea in US District Court in Manhattan in a deal aimed at strengthening the case against billionaire hedge-fund operator Raj Rajaratnam. Rajaratnam reaped $19 million from investments made after Kumar, a former senior partner and director at McKinsey & Co.,...

WASHINGTON — Depicting moment-to-moment detail, the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday laid out civil fraud charges linking a former Goldman Sachs board member to the biggest hedge fund insider trading case ever. It’s a portrait of corporate board meetings leading to secret phone calls, to stock trading orders, and finally to huge illicit profits made within hours. The SEC charged Rajat Gupta, who has also served on the boards of Procter & Gamble and the parent company for American Airlines.

NEW YORK — The second trial to result from a massive investigation into insider trading at hedge funds ended yesterday with the conviction of a trio of Wall Street traders on charges they paid hefty bribes to coax confidential information out of shady lawyers. A jury reached the verdict against stock trader Zvi Goffer and two others in federal court in Manhattan after deliberating five days since June 2. It came a month after the conviction of Raj Rajaratnam, the onetime billionaire who founded the Galleon Group of hedge funds and who was once Goffer’s boss.

NEW YORK — Jurors yesterday considered the fate of a hedge fund founder accused of making tens of millions of dollars through insider trading after a judge reminded them they can rehear any of the dozens of taped conversations between the defendant and his friends. The trial of Raj Rajaratnam entered its eighth week yesterday. Before jurors began to deliberate, they were instructed on the law by US District Judge Richard J. Holwell, who said they could choose to listen to the secretly taped conversations, which prosecutors...