The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fined Christopher Niehaus, former managing director with Jefferies International Ltd., for failing to act with due skill, care and diligence by sharing confidential information about one client with a friend, who was also a client, over mobile instant message application WhatsApp.
The FCA says Niehaus shared the information primarily to impress his friends, not to facilitate any illegal insider trading activity.
“The details of the information he shared included the identity of the client, the details relating to the client mandate and the fee Jefferies would charge for their involvement in the transaction. Mr. Niehaus also boasted about how he may be able to pay off his mortgage if one of the deals was successful,” the FCA says.
Niehaus was suspended from Jefferies pending the completion of its disciplinary process, the FCA says, and he resigned before that process was completed. He admitted the misconduct to the FCA, settling the case with a £37,198 (approx. $62,000) fine.