SEC Charges New York Law Firm Employee Over Alleged $55,000 Insider Trading Scheme

The Securities and Exchange Commission charged Chetram Balli on Nov. 12, 2026, accusing the international law firm employee of trading on material nonpublic information concerning client mergers and acquisitions ¹. On the same day, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York filed parallel criminal charges against Balli ¹.

According to the SEC's complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, Balli worked as a document processing specialist at the New York office of a firm with a major mergers and acquisitions practice ¹. Regulators alleged that between May 2025 and October 2026, Balli accessed confidential information regarding forthcoming acquisition announcements involving firm clients ¹. Despite his employer's policies prohibiting insider trading, Balli allegedly traded on nonpublic data across at least eight occasions, yielding roughly $55,000 in illicit gains ¹.

Regulatory Surveillance and Penalties

The SEC's Enforcement Division Market Abuse Unit uncovered the trades through the analysis of Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) market data ¹. The investigation was coordinated with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and federal prosecutors ¹.

The civil complaint charges Balli with violating Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 ¹. The SEC is seeking permanent injunctive relief, civil monetary penalties, and the disgorgement of profits alongside prejudgment interest ¹. Proceedings will continue in the Eastern District of New York alongside the federal criminal case ¹.