Overview
- Spain’s securities regulator, in a decision published Monday in the Official State Gazette, labeled the breaches “very serious” and set fines of €200,000 for Gerard Piqué and €100,000 for José Elías.
- Investigators found that Elías, a major shareholder in Aspy Global Services, tipped Piqué about confidential takeover talks with telemedicine firm Atrys Health.
- Piqué then bought 104,166 Aspy shares on January 20, 2021 while holding that nonpublic information, which the CNMV says constitutes insider trading.
- Atrys announced a friendly offer for Aspy on January 22, 2021, the share price rose, and Piqué sold on January 27 for a gain that media estimate at about €50,000 based on historical prices, a figure not used in the sanction calculation.
- The sanctions take effect through the CNMV’s administrative process and can be challenged before the Administrative Chamber of Spain’s Audiencia Nacional, a court that reviews regulatory decisions.