In a case brought by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Julian Rifat – a former senior execution trader and portfolio strategist at Moore Europe Capital Management LLC – has today been sentenced at Southwark Crown Court to 19 months imprisonment; Mr Rifat has also been fined £100,000 for the same offences and ordered to pay costs of £159,402.
During the relevant period, Mr Rifat was a senior execution trader at Moore Europe Capital Management LLC. Rifat passed inside information, obtained during the course of his employment, to an associate, Graeme Shelley, who then traded for their joint benefit. Graeme Shelley, previously a broker at Novum Securities, pleaded guilty to insider dealing with Rifat and with another associate, Paul Milsom, in March 2014; Paul Milsom, an execution trader at Legal and General Insurance Management Ltd, pleaded guilty to insider dealing in March 2013.
Mr Rifat is the third individual to be sentenced for insider dealing offences arising out of Operation Tabernula – the FCA’s largest and most complex insider dealing investigation.
His Honour Judge McCreath saidthat Mr Rifat had acted “deliberately and dishonestly” but gave him credit for his guilty plea and additional credit for his significant personal mitigation.
Georgina Philippou, acting director of enforcement and market oversight, said:
"Mr Rifat was a very experienced market professional. He was privy to highly sensitive information at the heart of some of the largest transactions in the UK financial markets during the latter half of 2009. Mr Rifat’s behaviour exploited financial markets during a particularly challenging time just as they were taking steps to recover from the 2008 crisis. The smooth running of our financial markets requires market professionals to play by the rules – Mr Rifat knew the rules, but he abused them for his own benefit."
Notes to editors
- The FCA, and previously the Financial Services Authority, have secured 27 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 on 7 March 2013, Richard Joseph on 11 March 2013 and Graeme Shelley on 27 March 2014, Julian Rifat on 7 November 2014, Ryan Willmott on the 26 February 2015 and Paul Coyle on the 3 March 2015.
- The FCA is currently prosecuting seven other individuals for insider dealing:
Martyn Dodgson 11 January 2016 Andrew Hind 11 January 2016 Benjamin Anderson 11 January 2016 Iraj Parvizi 11 January 2016 Richard Baldwin 11 January 2016 Grant Harrison 11 January 2016 Damian Clarke 14 March 2016 - The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 gives the FCA powers to investigate and prosecute insider dealing, defined by The Criminal Justice Act 1993.
- Individuals with information about market abuse can call the FCA’s market abuse hotline on 020 7066 4900.
- On the 1 April 2013 the Financial Conduct Authority (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).
- 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.
- Find out more information about the FCA.