Translated material
The Central Bank may allow wiretapping of phones suspected of insider trading
The Bank of Russia may receive the right, by court decision, to tap the phones of those suspected of insider trading. The Ministry of Finance is preparing a corresponding bill, TASS reports with reference to Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev.
“Rather draconian measures are being prepared, similar to those taken in the USA and Great Britain. This is the first insider trading bill that will simply punish insider trading with a hot iron. Moreover, it gives the Bank of Russia, by court decision, to wiretap telephone conversations, as a body that will receive supervisory functions,” Moiseev said during a speech at the Financial University.
The upcoming law will allow “suppressing” cases of insider trading and will give “serious powers” to the Bank of Russia. According to Moiseev, if the market can be as efficient as desired, but if management knows that tomorrow they will announce dividends higher than the market expects, and at the same time begins to buy shares of their company, then such things should be publicly suppressed.
A bill tightening the law on insider information was adopted by the State Duma on January 29. The new law expands the list of insiders and introduces additional requirements for professional participants in the securities market.