A UK court has found Redinel Korfuzi and Oerta Korfuzi guildy of insider dealing and money laundering offences which netted them over £1 million - following a case brought by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

Redinel Korfuzi worked as a research analyst at Janus Henderson where, the regulator says, "he regularly obtained confidential, price-sensitive information for publicly traded companies as part of his role."

"Between 17 December 2019 and 25 March 2021, Mr Korfuzi conspired with his sister, Oerta Korfuzi, to use that confidential information to deal in the shares of at least 13 companies ahead of market announcements.

"The trades were executed through accounts held by Mr Korfuzi’s sister, personal trainer (Rogerio de Aquino) and his partner (Dema Almeziad). They used Contracts for Difference (CFDs), taking positions that the value of the relevant shares would go down and closing the positions after the market announcements. The suspicious trading was detected by the FCA’s market monitoring systems despite their arrangements, which were designed to conceal Mr Korfuzi’s involvement in the trading and to maximise profits.

"Mr and Ms Korfuzi were also convicted of money laundering. Between 1 January 2019 and 25 March 2021 they received dirty cash derived from the proceeds of crime, making 176 cash deposits totalling £198,210. The source of the cash was unrelated to the insider dealing with which they were charged."

The two will be sentenced on 4 July, and the FCA said it will apply for confiscation orders to recover the proceeds of crime.

The FCA notes that the co‑defendants, Rogerio de Aquino and Dema Almeziad, were acquitted of all charges, however, the court ordered a separate trial in the case for a fifth defendant, Iva Spahiu, who now faces a trial fixed for 28 June 2027.

The FCA stated: "Temporary Reporting Restrictions pursuant to s4(2) Contempt of Court Act 1981 are in place to avoid a substantial risk of prejudice to the administration of justice in the trial of Ms Iva Spahiu. Consequently, there is to be no further reporting of any evidence concerning the particular involvement of Ms Spahiu."

Steve Smart, Joint Executive Director of Enforcement and Market Oversight at the FCA, said: "We are committed to fighting financial crime and protecting the integrity of our markets. Those who use inside information to unlawfully make profits should be aware that we will identify them and bring them to justice."