John David Rothstein, former senior vice president and national sales manager at Toronto-based Aston Hill Asset Management Inc., has agreed to a two-year trading ban and $11,000 in monetary sanctions after admitting to trading ahead of Amaya Inc.’s announcement of a major acquisition and to tipping a broker to the forthcoming deal.
Specifically, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) accepted the settlement agreement with Rothstein on Tuesday that will see him pay a $5,500 fine and disgorge the $5,500 he generated by trading ahead of the public announcement that Amaya was planning a US$4-billion acquisition.
Rothstein learned of the pending deal from his firm’s chief investment officer, Ben Cheng, and allegedly also passed along the news to Frank Soave, a broker with CIBC Wood Gundy, according to the settlement. The allegations against Cheng and Soave have not been proven; a hearing on those charges is set to begin on May 4.
Read: OSC to hold hearing into Amaya insider trading scandal
Rothstein admitted to violating securities law in the settlement agreement, which acknowledges that he “has been granted substantial credit for co-operation” in the case, including a pledge to testify as a witness for OSC staff.
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