The Tokyo District Court on Friday sentenced a former employee of Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank to two years in prison, suspended for four years, for engaging in insider stock trading through the abuse of tender offer information before disclosure.

In his trial, presided by Judge Reiko Kaihatsu, Hajime Katayama, 55, former chief of the bank's second stock transfer agency business department, was also fined ¥2 million and ordered to pay ¥61.4 million in additional penalties for his violation of the financial instruments and exchange law. The fines were in line with the demand by public prosecutors, who had sought a two-year prison sentence.

The defendant "undermined financial market fairness and soundness by taking advantage of his position for his own benefits," the judge said. "There is no room for leniency in his motive of saving ¥20 million for his post-retirement life," the judge concluded.

The judge refused the defense's request for a reduction in the additional penalty.

"This cannot be treated as an exceptional case, because there are no particular circumstances that need to be taken into consideration," the judge said.

Meanwhile, the judge suspended the sentence since Katayama had turned himself in and showed an attitude that he was reflecting on his actions.

Katayama was dismissed in November 2024 after he reported his fraudulent stock transactions to the bank in late October the same year.

The defendant purchased a total of some 25,900 shares in three firms for about ¥32.1 million between December 2022 and August 2024, based on tender offer information he acquired through his work, according to the verdict.