Former equities trader at Schroders Investment Management sentenced for insider dealing

Damian Clarke, a former equities trader at Schroders Investment Management has today been sentenced to two years imprisonment having pleaded guilty to nine counts of insider dealing.

Between August 2000 and January 2013, Mr Clarke was employed initially as an assistant fund manager and, from 2006, as an equities trader. In these roles, Mr Clarke received inside information about significant corporate events, mainly anticipated public announcements of mergers and acquisitions. He used this information to place trades using accounts in his own name and that of close family members, in respect of which he had been provided with the account numbers and passwords.  The offences were committed over a 9 year period between October 2003 and November 2012. The total profits made from Mr Clarke’s insider dealing amount to at least £155,161.98.

In sentencing Mr Clarke the judge, Her Honour Judge Korner QC, remarked ‘it was no exaggeration when prosecution counsel said in opening that these offences were pre-meditated, deliberate, and dishonest.'

Mark Steward, Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight, said

'This is yet another case involving a city professional caught and jailed for abusing the market that employs him. Insider dealing is increasingly detectable these days and, where detected, more likely to lead to terms of imprisonment and shame rather than glamorous profits and fame.'

Confiscation proceedings will also be pursued against Mr Clarke.

Notes for editors

1. The case was heard at Southwark Crown Court.
2. Damian Clarke date of birth: 6 October 1975.
3. The nine counts that Mr Clarke has pleaded guilty are when he traded as follows:
   1) Swan Hill Group plc (trading 30 October – 11 November 2003)
   2) Marlborough Stirling (trading on 6 January –7 March 2005).
   3) Eidos plc (trading on 18 – 21 March 2005).
   4) Neutec Pharma plc (trading on 6 June 2006).
   5) Retail Decisions plc (trading on 28 – 29 September 2006).
   6) Raven Mount Group (trading on 13 – 17 February 2009.
   7) BSS Group (trading on 24 – 26 May 2010).
   8) Autonomy Corp plc (trading on 18 August 2011).
   9) Invensys plc (trading on 28 November 2012).
4. The FCA, and previously the Financial Services Authority, have secured 29 other convictions in relation to insider dealing: Christopher McQuoid and James William Melbourne in March 2009; Matthew and Neel Uberoi in November 2009, Malcolm Calvert on 11 March 2010, Anjam Ahmad on 22 June 2010, Neil Rollins on 21 January 2011, Christian Littlewood and Angie Littlewood on 8 October 2010 and Helmy Omar Sa'aid on 10 January 2011, Rupinder Sidhu on 15 December, and James and Miranda Sanders together with another individual in May 2012 and Ali Mustafa, Pardip Saini, Paresh Shah, Neten Shah, Bijal Shah and Truptesh Patel on 27 July 2012, Thomas Ammann on 13 December 2012, Paul Milsom[1] on 7 March 2013, Richard Joseph on 11 March 2013 and Graeme Shelley on 27 March 2014, Julian Rifat[2] on 7 November 2014, Ryan Willmott[3] on the 26 February 2015, Paul Coyle[4] on the 3 March 2015 and Martyn Dodgson and Andrew Hind[5] on 12 May 2016.
5. The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 gives the FCA powers to investigate and prosecute insider dealing, defined by The Criminal Justice Act 1993.
6. Individuals with information about market abuse can call the FCA’s market abuse hotline on 020 7066 4900.
7. On 1 April 2013 the FCA became responsible for the conduct supervision of all regulated financial firms and the prudential supervision of those not supervised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA)
8. The FCA has an overarching strategic objective of ensuring the relevant markets function well. To support this it has three operational objectives: to secure an appropriate degree of protection for consumers, to protect and enhance the integrity of the UK financial system and to promote effective competition in the interests of consumers
9. Find out more information about the FCA[6].