March 24: The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) has filed a case against Guru Prasad Neupane at the Kathmandu District Court for the offense of insider trading. SEBON claims that Neupane did insider trading when he was the chairman of Ridi Hydropower Company while buying and selling shares of the company from March 2021 to July 2022. An investigation conducted by the board   found that Neupane had committed an offense amounting to Rs 32.3 million.

According to the Securities Registration and Issuance Regulations 2079, the provision states that the director, executive head, auditor, company secretary or any person directly involved in the management or accounting of any organized institution cannot buy, sell or transfer the shares of that organization or its subsidiary company as long as they remain in office or for one year after retiring from the office. Likewise, the person holding this position cannot buy and sell shares in the name of the firm or their family members. For violating the securities law, the board has already punished Neupane with a fine of Rs 75,000 and barred him from being a director in a listed organization for 10 years.

If the case filed by the board in the court is upheld, the punishment can be imprisonment for up to one year or fine equivalent to Rs 32.3 million or both.