Verified Document

Explication Of Insider Trading Essay

Wealth, Power and Insider Trading on Wall Street In today's increasingly internationalized worldwide economic system, defined by the expansion of multinational corporate conglomerates into foreign shores, the necessity for effective and efficient financial regulation to prevent criminal conduct covered by the catchall term "insider trading" has never been greater. Whereas autonomous countries once maintained clear authority over businesses which were built on their shores, through levying taxes, enforcing fiscal regulations, and instituting a lawful system of commerce, today the most successful companies are those with the wherewithal to transfer their operations abroad. Global financial management requires a comprehensive comprehension of foreign exchange and currency markets, derivatives securities, international financial debt and equity markets, international portfolio investments and the global market for real assets. Due to the fact that "financial markets and intermediaries today are globally linked through a vast international telecommunications network," with this continual process resulting in "the trading of securities and the transfer of payments go on virtually around the clock," (Merton and Bodie, 1995), the field of global financial management has emerged to meet the needs of major multinational corporations. According to the United States Securities and Exchange Corporation (SEC), "illegal insider trading refers generally to buying or selling a security, in breach of a fiduciary duty or other relationship of trust and confidence, while in possession of material, nonpublic information about the security" (2001), although this term has come to describe a whole host of unethical activities in which information not accessible to the general public is used to take advantage of market conditions in the pursuit of profit.

One of the primary mandates of public policy makers within a democratic society is the conception and implementation of laws designed to prevent the undue consolidation of power by those who would use said authority to manipulate the system. Throughout American history laws have been enacted to regulate the growth of monopolistic corporations, to prevent corrupt party machines from dominating the political process, and to erode the growing power of paid lobbyists to influence Congressional action. The corrosive quality of unchecked power has always been anathema to the American ideal of equal opportunity, and the same instinctual...

As reported by the SEC, criminal convictions for insider trading overwhelmingly involve "corporate officers, directors, and employees who traded the corporation's securities after learning of significant, confidential corporate developments & #8230; (and) government employees who learned of such information because of their employment by the government" (2001), a trend which speaks to the systemic abuse of power on which insider trading is most often predicated. While the industrial tycoons of yesteryear have succumbed to the "trustbusting" efforts of federal regulators, a return to the purely profit-driven capitalistic fervor that once derailed this country's economic system during the Great Recession has spawned a new generation of robber barons. The accelerated growth of the investment banking industry -- which has become irrevocably distorted by novel trends like high-frequency trading and mortgage-backed derivative packages -- has given rise to an elite class of billionaire bankers, members of the so-called "1%" of society which has accumulated a grossly unbalanced level of wealth and power. By tracing the insidious connection between unimaginable wealth and unrivaled power to the phenomenon of insider trading, it is possible to identify viable routes through which modern policy makers can implement truly effective Wall Street reform.
According to information compiled by the SEC, a total of 58 insider trading actions were brought against 131 individuals and entities in 2012, and during the last three years the SEC filed more insider trading actions -- a total of 168 -- than in any three-year period in the agency's history (2013). As the SEC states on the organization's website, "these insider trading actions were filed against nearly 400 individuals and entities with illicit profits or losses avoided totaling approximately $600 million & #8230; (and) many involved financial professionals, hedge fund managers, corporate insiders, and attorneys who unlawfully traded on material non-public information, undermining the level playing field that is fundamental to the integrity and fair functioning of the capital markets" (2013). In nearly every case of insider trading listed on the SEC website, those accused are high-ranking officials…

Sources used in this document:
References

Domhoff, G.W., (2010). Who rules America? Challenges to corporate dominance (6th ed.). New

York, NY: McGraw-Hill

Harrison, B.C., & Dye, T.R., (2011) Power and society: An introduction to the social sciences

(12 th ed.). Boston MA: Wadsworth
Insider Trading (2001, April 19). U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved from http://www.sec.gov/answers/insider.htm
Insider Trading Cases (2001, April 19). U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved from https://www.sec.gov/spotlight/insidertrading/cases.shtml
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Wealth & Happiness Surveys Have Indicated That
Words: 1379 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Wealth & Happiness Surveys have indicated that although citizens of the United Kingdom earn double the income they earned forty years ago, they find themselves less happy. There is no shortage of fables that support this story -- from Ebenezer Scrooge to Willy Loman the pursuit of wealth in modern society has often led to unhappiness in one form or another. Yet the myth that connections wealth to happiness remains powerful

Wealth of Nations Adam Smith,
Words: 4050 Length: 13 Document Type: Book Report

For Hobbes, individuals must be a larger population beneath authority, and those individuals must, by the very nature of the perpetuation of the species, cede all rights and control over to that authority. It is also well within the natural rule of law that there might be abuses of authority, and that even though rebellion might be expected, it is up to the individual to maintain that the State

Wealth and Capital Related to Race and Crime
Words: 405 Length: 1 Document Type: Essay

Wealth and Captial Wealth and Capital: Relationship with Race and Crime Income and wealth are two very different animals- someone's income constitutes their salary, hourly wage and other forms of income; but, wealth is a different term that embodies several different forms of having cash- wealth includes net worth which includes homes, cars, and stock portfolios, among other things. Though these concepts have definitions, in a sociological sense, wealth is reflected in

Wealth of Networks Communication General It Is
Words: 4609 Length: 14 Document Type: Research Paper

Wealth of Networks Communication (general) It is said that the Western culture is going through some sort of cultural war in terms of communication and technology (Braman 153-182). The battlegrounds are seen in the courts, the legislatures, international bodies, local communities, and distant countries that individually may not have much power to affect the outcome though they do have a vital interest in who wins. The war is global -- and is

Wealth the Benefits of Being Wealthy Are
Words: 545 Length: 2 Document Type: Term Paper

Wealth The benefits of being wealthy are numerous and varied. Perhaps the most obvious is the ability to live a comfortable lifestyle and enjoy indulgences that only someone with money can enjoy, such as exotic vacations, spending sprees at the mall, and grown-up toys such as luxury cars and boats. However there is perhaps a responsibility involved with wealth. Most truly wealthy people are major contributors, donors, and sponsors of various charitable

Wealth Management My Personal Wealth
Words: 951 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

When I am 37 years old, I check my investments and discover that I now have a portfolio of approximately $128,000. During the preceding 7 years I have fathered three children (two boys and a girl) and they are now at an age where the private schools they attend are costing me an arm and a leg, the house my spouse and I purchased is quite extravagant, and the two

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now