US hedge fund billionaire found guilty

US hedge fund billionaire Raj Rajaratnam has been found guilty of making tens of millions of dollars from insider trading.{{more}}

The unanimous verdict, which he plans to appeal, ends an eight-week trial in what prosecutors call the largest hedge fund insider trading case in history.

Central to the prosecution’s evidence were tapped phone calls between Rajaratnam and corporate insiders.

Rajaratnam faces between 15-and-a-half and 19-and-a-half years in jail.

He was released on a $100m (£61m) bail with an electronic tag until the sentencing date of 29 July, although prosecutors had asked for him to be kept in custody, saying he may flee to his native Sri Lanka.

Rajaratnam was found guilty on all of the 14 charges he faced, including five counts of conspiracy and nine of securities fraud.

The hedge fund manager’s defence attorney said they would appeal the verdict, noting that 23 of the 37 original accusations against his client had already been dropped before the trial began.