A new previously anonymous witness "Tipper X" has been named in the Galleon insider trading case, and there's speculation that he'll help prosecutors expand their probe to several other hedge funds.
According to WSJ and others, "Tipper X" is named Thomas Hardin was a trader at Lanexa Capital, a hedge fund seeded with money from hedge fund legend Julian Robertson.
That right there -- the connection Robertson and his spawn -- is interesting.
And there are obviously some folks inside the prosecutor's office eager to send a message to other hedge funds
WSJ:
Mr. Hardin, or "Tipper X" as he is referred to in the SEC complaint, was tipped off on July 2, 2007, to a Blackstone Group Inc. takeover of Hilton Hotels Corp., according to the SEC complaint.
After receiving the tip, the SEC says, Tipper X then tipped Gautham Shankar, a trader involved in the alleged "Octopussy" ring, about the takeover. Tipper X "traded profitably" on the tip, according to the SEC complaint, while Mr. Shankar bought 25,000 shares of Hilton and made a profit of $156,000, the complaint says. Mr. Shankar pleaded guilty to insider-trading charges and is cooperating with the government's investigation as well. A lawyer for Mr. Shankar didn't return calls for comment.
Mr. Hardin's name surfaced in a court filing made by the SEC in connection with the civil case, which is moving toward a trial date this summer under federal judge Jed Rakoff. The filing includes a list of individuals that the SEC says might have information about the case.
The government has said its investigation is continuing and the large number of cooperating witnesses in the case could spawn other investigations, people close to the situation say.
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