Ex-Goldman Banker Pleads Not Guilty in Insider Trading Case

(Bloomberg) - Former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. vice president Brijesh Goel pleaded not guilty to charges that he illegally traded on confidential information he obtained while working at the investment bank.

Goel, 37, was arraigned Thursday in federal court in Manhattan. He was released on a $1 million bail package, which replaces a $500,000 bond set on Tuesday.

Prosecutors allege Goel passed along information he received about potential Goldman deals to a friend over squash games and then split the trading profits. In court on Thursday, prosecutors said the evidence against Goel would include phone calls recorded by a cooperating witness.

Reed Brodsky, a lawyer for Goel, has denied the allegations. “Sadly, the government rushed to charge Brijesh on the apparent say-so of one person about something that supposedly happened years ago before Brijesh’s current job -- without giving Brijesh the chance to speak with them,” Brodsky said in a statement. “Thankfully the judge and jury will not make that mistake, and Brijesh looks forward to demonstrating his innocence.”

According to a parallel Securities and Exchange Commission suit, Goel passed tips to a foreign exchange trader and longtime friend named Akshay Niranjan, 33, with whom he often played squash. Niranjan was also named as a defendant in the civil case but was not criminally charged. Robert Anello, a lawyer for Niranjan, declined to comment.

Goel worked at Goldman from 2013 to 2021. He last year joined Apollo Global Management Inc. as a principal but was put on indefinite leave after the charges against him were announced on Monday.

By Bob Van Voris

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