South Korea’s Securities and Futures Commission referred Mr. B, an investor relations executive at KOSDAQ-listed Company A, to investigative authorities over suspected insider trading and failure to report share ownership. At its 15th regular meeting on the 2nd, the SFC said Mr. B bought Company A shares between March and June 2024 before disclosure of key Phase 1 clinical-trial results for a drug under development and information about a technology-transfer agreement for the drug. He allegedly used accounts held in other people’s names and earned about 20 million won, or approximately $15,000, in illicit gains. The Capital Markets Act prohibits listed-company insiders from trading on material nonpublic information obtained through their duties or allowing others to use it. Criminal penalties can include at least one year in prison or fines of up to six times the illicit gains, while administrative penalties can reach twice the gains. Executives and major shareholders must report their holdings and ownership changes to the Financial Supervisory Service within five days, regardless of whose name the shares are registered under; violations can carry up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won. The SFC said it would continue monitoring unfair trading, investigate suspected violations and take strict action, while urging the public to report suspected misconduct.