As we noted, America is not the only place where insider trading seems to take place. The wife o the SNB or swiss central bank (no idea why its not SWB), recently profited off trades ahead of moves by the SNB to curtail the rise of the Swiss Franc.
Congress take note. Instead of denying insider trading, one can resign with still an ounce of dignity left.
Philipp Hildebrand resigned as head of the Swiss central bank after a currency transaction by his wife last year dented the credibility of the franc’s chief guardian.
“He will make a statement on his decision at 3.15 p.m.” the bank said in a statement today. “He will also make a number of documents available.”
Hildebrand’s departure from the SNB’s three-member board deprives Switzerland of a policy maker who managed to stem the franc’s rally to records against the dollar and the euro, which had threatened to derail the economy.
While the SNB agreed to publish rules on personal financial ethics and an independent probe cleared the central bank head of wrongdoing, a dollar purchase over $504,000 carried out by his wife in August, three weeks before the SNB imposed a franc cap, was found “sensitive.”
Hildebrand joined the central bank in 2003, becoming its youngest ever policy maker, and took over as president in January 2010. Before that he was chief investment officer at private banks Vontobel Group in Zurich and Union Bancaire Privee in Geneva.
As head of the SNB, he helped toughen financial regulation, forcing UBS AG and Credit Suisse Group AG to boost capital buffers. He also lowered borrowing costs to zero and in September introduced the first currency ceiling since the 1970s to help protect the economy.
Currency Ceiling
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-09/hildebrand-steps-down-at-snb-after-franc-trade-controversy.html
