Insider dealer is fined £15,000

THE Financial Services Authority has finally nailed its first insider dealer under the new civil regime, fining the company secretary of a small, listed publisher £15,000 for the offence.

But the punishment may raise eyebrows as it emerged that the fine was only just over twice the money the culprit made from the offence, and that he is still in the same position.

Robert Middlemiss of AIM-listed Profile Media Group sold 70,000 shares in the group in April 2002 when he became aware it was about to issue a profits warning. By selling ahead of a plunge in the share price, he avoided a loss of £6,825, the FSA said, adding that it was fining Middlemiss under its Market Abuse Code.

Andrew Procter, FSA director of enforcement, said: 'We will not tolerate individuals using a position of trust for their own personal gain. We have taken action in this case because of the seriousness with which we view such abuses of position.' The FSA has hinted for months that it was close to completing a string of cases against insider dealers under civil law, where the burden of proof is much lower than in a criminal prosecution. This is its first scalp.

'Good Lord, I wasn't aware that this was out today,' Middlemiss said, when contacted by the Evening Standard. He said he had not been sacked, had no plans to resign and did not regard the offence as insider dealing.

Middlemiss joined PMG in 1997 and at the time of the offence was assessing the impact of problems at a key US arm on group trading.