Insider trading: Rajaratnam tried in NYC today

The trial of Raj Rajaratnam, the co-founder of the now defunct hedge fund management firm, Galleon Group, is scheduled to take place at the US Supreme Court in New York on March 8.

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Rajat Gupta, a former Goldman Sachs director, reportedly has been accused of leaking information to Rajaratnam about Goldman, a Proctor & Gamble earnings report, and Berkshire Hathaway’s billion-dollar investment in Goldman.

The SEC filed civil charges against him last week.
 
The Galleon case has led to a string of criminal charges against dozens of other insider-trading culprits.
 
According to Bloomberg, Reuters and Wall Street Journal, prosecutors will present to jurors wiretap evidence of Gupta allegedly passing tips on to Rajaratnam shortly after a Goldman board meetings.

Goldman’s CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, is reportedly expected to testify as a prosecution witness who will bring to light what Gupta learned as a member of the Goldman board.

Regulators contend that Gupta – after concluding a board call during which he learned that Warren Buffett had agreed to invest $5 billion in the firm – picked up the phone and called his then colleague, Rajaratnam. Rajaratnam then immediately placed bets on shares of Goldman Sachs that raked in $900,000 for Galleon Group.