Vermilion Energy employee agrees to pay hefty penalty for insider trading (updated)

Vermilion Energy

28/12/2023 24:20

(Adds details throughout story)
    By Sourasis  Bose and Tanay Dhumal
       Dec 27 (Reuters) - An employee of Canadian oil and gas
company Vermilion Energy  VET.TO  has agreed to pay a C$400,000
($302,755) penalty after admitting to illegal insider trading in
a takeover target's shares, the Alberta Securities Commission
said on Wednesday.
    Behjat Haghshenas, who was a senior reservoir specialist for
Vermilion when it was in talks to acquire Leucrotta Exploration,
has also agreed to a 10-year trading ban as part of a settlement
agreement with the commission, the regulator said.
    The settlement is the largest in at least 10 years in terms
of penalty as well as duration of the trading ban, the
commission said in a statement to Reuters.
    Haghshenas admitted to illegal insider trading in the shares
of Leucrotta before its acquisition by Vermilion, on which she
made a profit of C$146,400.
    "Haghshenas became aware of material facts about the
potential acquisition that were not generally disclosed and she
purchased Leucrotta shares while in possession of those facts,"
the securities regulator said.
    Vermilion bought Leucrotta for C$477 million in 2022.
    Haghshenas and Vermilion did not immediately respond to
Reuters requests for comment.
    Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) members imposed
fines or obtained C$496,008 for illegal insider trading for the
year ended June 30, compared with C$682,554 for the same period
a year earlier.
    
($1 = 1.3212 Canadian dollars)

 (Reporting by Sourasis Bose and Tanay Dhumal in Bengaluru;
Editing by Sonali Paul)
 ((Sourasis.Bose@thomsonreuters.com))