Dive Brief:
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A hedge fund manager for Visium Asset Management, who was arrested last week for allegedly profiting from insider information about pending FDA drug approvals, has apparently committed suicide.
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Sanjay Valvani was found dead Monday evening at his home, police said. A suicide note and knife were reportedly found at the scene.
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Valvani was charged with having made more than $32 million through trades by allegedly using information provided by a former FDA official, who worked as a Visium consultant.
Dive Insight:
The death is a stunning turn in a case that first hit the news last week, in which Valvani, another fund manager, and the former FDA employee were arrested on insider trading-related charges. Visium subsequently announced it would liquidate four hedge funds and also sold a fund to another firm.
Bloomberg reports Visium is the biggest hedge fund to have employees "linked to criminal wrongdoing" since an insider trading investigation into SAC Capital in 2013. That company pleaded guilty to charges, paid $1.8 billion in fines and closed.
Valvani allegedly received advance tips on drug approvals from Gordon Johnston, a former deputy director of the FDA's Office of Generic Drugs and subsequent consultant to Visium. According to federal prosecutors, Valvani paid Johnston a montly retainer, while profiting from trading on the information Johnston provided.