Galleon founder attempts to get bail conditions reduced in US insider case
THE head of hedge fund Galleon yesterday appealed for his bail in connection with insider trading charges to be slashed by $75m (£45m).
Tycoon Raj Rajaratnam faces claims that he made $20m through illegal tips from companies including IBM and Intel. The 52-year-old billionaire asked a US judge to reduce his bail to $25m from $100m. His lawyer claimed the government’s case was weak and that Rajaratnam intends to clear his name and won’t flee.
Rajaratnam is among six people charged so far, including Anil Kumar and Hector Ruiz, in what prosecutors allege is the largest hedge fund insider trading ring ever uncovered.
Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs were among Galleon’s top providers of hedge fund services or prime brokerage and last night the institutions categorically denied reports that they received fees from Galleon partly in return for market information that would not have been disclosed to most investors.
Goldman Sachs said: “Any suggestion that GS provided inside information to Galleon is completely untrue.”
Morgan Stanley declined to make any public statement, although sources close to the bank said it had provided trading and financing services to Galleon but had not been party to anything inappropriate.