Credit Suisse: executive under investigation over insider trading in Taiwan

A senior executive at Credit Suisse Taiwan Elsa Chiu and her husband were released on bail early Wednesday after being interrogate about alleged insider trading in the takeover of Hermes Microvision by ASML of the Netherlands, Taipei District Prosecutors Office spokesman Chang Chieh-Chin told Reuters.

"During the merger and acquisition activities, there were some trading irregularities, and the stock exchange regulator detected this irregular trading," said Chang, who is also a deputy chief prosecutor.

Chiu allegedly made $679,000 in profits on the deal, which was the second biggest merger of 2016 in Taiwan. HMI produces chip-making equipment, while ASML is the world’s largest supplier of photolithography systems for the semiconductor industry.

The Taiwan branch of Credit Suisse was in charge of handling the deal, and as soon as it was known to be successful, but before the public announcement, Chiu asked friends to buy large quantities of shares in HMI, media reports alleged Tuesday.

Early Wednesday, she was allowed to leave the Taipei District Prosecutors Office after paying $162,000 in bail. Speaking with reporters on the sidelines of parliament on Wednesday, Lee Ruey-Tsang, chairman of the Financial Supervisory Commission, confirmed the ASML-Hermes Microvision deal was being investigated, but declined to elaborate.

Chiu, 45, had built up a reputation as a top expert in mergers and acquisitions in Taiwan following studies in international management at National Taiwan University and an MBA on the subject at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA).