Are Corporate Executives Privvy To Stock Exchange Secrets?
What might these stock exchange secrets be? In late (Sept-Oct) 2006 it began to appear as though company executives had found a new and secret method to make extra money from the companies that they manage. A back dating of options scandal and the way these are reported in company accounts has blown the lid off US corporate secrecy. The scandal seems to centre around ways for executives to award themselves and their colleagues stock options and then backdate this award to a date more profitable! More amazingly, this appears to be entirely legal. What is not legal is reporting them in the same way that any other option is reported. It appears that this mis-reporting has the potential to lead to convictions. There have already been a number of high profile resignations. In one company, it appears as though stock options were awarded to someone who is deceased. Whilst this may have made thousands or millions of dollars for the executives involved, this is not really a sure fire path for p
