Ex-Goldman Sachs UK Analyst Jailed for Insider Dealing after London Trial

Mohammed Zina, 35, was employed by Goldman Sachs International in its conflicts resolution group in London. - Reuters
Mohammed Zina, 35, was employed by Goldman Sachs International in its conflicts resolution group in London. - Reuters
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Ex-Goldman Sachs UK Analyst Jailed for Insider Dealing after London Trial

Mohammed Zina, 35, was employed by Goldman Sachs International in its conflicts resolution group in London. - Reuters
Mohammed Zina, 35, was employed by Goldman Sachs International in its conflicts resolution group in London. - Reuters

A former Goldman Sachs analyst was on Friday jailed for 22 months after he was convicted in a London court of using inside information to buy shares in listed companies and make more than 140,000 pounds ($175,650).

Mohammed Zina, 35, was employed by Goldman Sachs International in its conflicts resolution group in London.

Prosecutors said he used confidential information to buy shares in six companies between July 2016 and December 2017, including chip designer Arm Holdings with knowledge of SoftBank Group's impending $32 billion acquisition.

Zina would have made another 15,000 pounds, but he was arrested before he could sell his shares in snack maker Snyder's-Lance Inc, prosecutors said, Reuters reported.

He had pleaded not guilty to six offences of insider dealing and three counts of fraud for allegedly lying to Tesco Bank about the purpose of loans which were used to buy the shares.

But Zina was convicted of all nine charges on Thursday, following a trial at Southwark Crown Court.

Judge Tony Baumgartner sentenced him to 22 months in prison, saying: "You betrayed the trust of your employer, as well as cheated honest investors in the shares you traded using inside information you saw at work.

"What you did strikes at the very heart of our financial markets and the trust and confidence the public places in them."

He added: "You have thrown away what was undoubtedly a promising career in banking, something that many young people dream of, and for the sake of easy gain."

The judge listed a further hearing in September to deal with the prosecution's application to confiscate the profits made by Zina.

A Goldman Sachs spokesperson said: "Mohammed Zina betrayed the trust we placed in him and his misuse of client information was in direct contradiction of our values. We have zero tolerance for this conduct."

Mohammed Zina's lawyer declined to comment following the sentence.

His brother Suhail Zina, formerly an associate at law firm Clifford Chance, had also stood trial but was cleared of all nine charges. Clifford Chance declined to comment.

Earlier on Friday, Zina's barrister Brendan Kelly told the court he was the most junior member of the conflicts resolution group and was arrested more than six years ago, so had been "enduring these proceedings" ever since.

"Both the stigma and the impact of both conviction and imprisonment will have a very significant effect on this relatively young man of exemplary character," Kelly said.

 

 

 

 

 



Non-Profit Sector Revenue in Saudi Arabia Reaches $14.5 Billion in 2023

The total revenue of non-profit sector organizations in Saudi Arabia marked a 33% increase. SPA
The total revenue of non-profit sector organizations in Saudi Arabia marked a 33% increase. SPA
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Non-Profit Sector Revenue in Saudi Arabia Reaches $14.5 Billion in 2023

The total revenue of non-profit sector organizations in Saudi Arabia marked a 33% increase. SPA
The total revenue of non-profit sector organizations in Saudi Arabia marked a 33% increase. SPA

Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) has said that the total revenue of non-profit sector organizations in the Kingdom amounted to SAR54.4 billion ($14.5 Billion) in 2023, marking a 33% increase compared to 2022.

The results, shown in the Non-Profit Sector Bulletin for 2023, indicated that health-related activities recorded the highest growth rate compared to the previous year, contributing 70% of the total revenue of the non-profit sector organizations, followed by education and research activities with a 53% increase, and volunteer brokerage and promotion activities with a 36% rise. These activities were the main contributors to the total revenue of non-profit organizations.

The bulletin also revealed that total expenditures of the non-profit sector reached SAR47 billion in 2023. Health-related activities represented the highest expenditure category, showing a 74% increase, followed by education and research activities with a 55% rise, and environmental activities with a 34% increase compared to 2022. These activities were the leading contributors to the total expenditures of non-profit organizations.

The figures also underscored the relative contribution of employed individuals to key activities within the non-profit sector in 2023. Cultural and entertainment activities led with a 27.6%, followed by social services activities at 27.2%, development and housing activities at 12.4%, health activities at 11.5%, and education and research activities at 7.5%. The remaining non-profit sector activities accounted for the remaining 13.8%.