Two brothers who worked at Goldman Sachs and leading City law firm Clifford Chance have appeared in court charged with insider dealing and fraud.
Mohammed Zina, 32, who worked as an analyst at Goldman Sachs, and his brother Suhail Zina, 33, who worked as a solicitor at Clifford Chance, appeared at Westminster magistrates court on Tuesday charged with six offences of insider dealing and three offences of fraud by false representation.
The brothers are accused of making a profit of about £142,000 from insider dealing in shares of companies including Arm Holdings and Punch Taverns in 2016 and 2017, according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
The pair are also accused of three counts of fraud related to loans totalling £95,000 taken out from Tesco Bank. The brothers are said to have told the bank they intended to use the funds for home improvements, when the loans were allegedly used to fund the insider dealing scheme.
The case was sent to Southwark crown court for a plea and trial preparation hearing on 16 March 2021. Fraud is punishable by a fine and/or up to 10 years’ imprisonment. Insider dealing is punishable by a fine and/or up to seven years’ imprisonment.
A spokesperson for Goldman Sachs said: “The protection of client confidential information is of paramount importance to Goldman Sachs. The firm treats any misuse of client confidential information with the utmost seriousness. Neither the firm nor any other current or former employee of the firm is the subject of an investigation into the matters giving rise to the proceedings.”
The spokesperson added that Mohammed Zina left the bank in 2018. His brother is understood to have left Clifford Chance in the same year, having qualified in 2017. The law firm declined to comment.
