Ex-Goldman Programmer Is Convicted

[cory777]

Source: New York Times

A jury has found a former Goldman Sachs computer programmer guilty of stealing source code from the bank’s high-frequency trading platform.

The trial of Sergey Aleynikov, a 40-year-old Russian immigrant, spotlighted the world of high-frequency trading, which uses complex computer algorithms to make rapid-fire trades to exploit tiny price discrepancies. High-frequency trading has become a growing important source of revenues at Wall Street firms. As a result, banks fiercely protect the code underpinning their businesses.

Mr. Aleynikov faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced.

The verdict is a victory for the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan, which brought the case and has recently raised its profile in its aggressive pursuit of corporate crime. It is also a win for the Justice Department broadly, which has made the prosecution of high-tech crime a priority.

Read more: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2010/12/10/ex-goldman-programmer-is-convicted/

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Activist News http://activistnews.blogspot.com/

[valerief]

1. And I'm sure he's the only one doing it.

:sarcasm:

[Frank Booth]

2. It's amazing how competent and swift justice is when Goldman Sachs is the victim of corporate crime.

I wonder why the same competence isn't displayed when Goldman Sachs is the perpetrator of massive corporate crime. . .

[ProudDad]

3. War is Peace. Lies are Truth

and the real corporate crime is making "rapid-fire trades to exploit tiny price discrepancies. High-frequency trading has become a growing important source of revenues at Wall Street firms."

There was talk on making that illegal but alas, the Goldman Sach's Administration put the kibosh on that one...

[ProudDad]

4. 10 Years for "stealing" from corporate criminals is now "corporate crime"

In Bizarro world...

[udbcrzy2]

6. Up to 10 years when sentenced

To me that means he may only get probation, it depends on the judge. Damnit!

[femrap]

5. I've read that roughly 70% of

trades on the NYSE is high-frequency.

So the poor little Russian dude goes to jail....and the top Robber Barons???

Shit.

[htuttle]

7. "a win for the Justice Department..., which has made the prosecution of high-tech crime a priority"

...Unless the high-tech crime is using that source code to build a program to rip off the market via high-frequency trades.

That's totally okay.

:eyes: