Five executives arrested in Europe for insider trading involving a Swiss IT company, avoiding up to €2.6M in losses

Law enforcement authorities from Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom have arrested five suspects involved in a large-scale insider trading scheme. On December 2, 2025, officers carried out searches at private residences and company premises, collecting key evidence about the illegal sale of shares belonging to an international IT company headquartered in Switzerland.

The suspects, who held senior positions at the time, allegedly sold significant volumes of their company’s shares while possessing confidential, non-public information. According to Eurojust, they offloaded the shares just before two pre-market press releases that were expected to negatively impact the stock price. By selling in advance, the suspects most likely avoided losses of up to €2.6 million.

Eurojust coordinated the cross-border cooperation between the three countries, enabling fast information exchange, searches, and interrogations.

Although insider trading in Switzerland can result in up to five years in prison, the IT company itself is not a target of the investigation. Proceedings against the detained suspects are still ongoing.

The case illustrates how insider trading remains one of the most serious offenses in financial markets. The coordinated European operation demonstrates that abusing privileged information and manipulating stock value carries severe consequences — even for high-ranking executives of international tech companies.