The Trader was charged with printing Société Générale’s algortihmic trading codes on paper with intent to use it for his new role once he left the bank.
Shortly after his resignation in November 2009, he would have started stealing documents containing trading algorithms. The bank, which was watching continuously his computer’s activity, knew the dcouments he had access to; Several security cameras recorded the full printing of the code. His contract with Societe Generale prevented him from working for a competing company until March 2010.
In April 2010, an undercover FBI agent posed as a recruiter and interviewed Agrawal. The trader told him he was in touch with all major financial institutions in New York and received over 115 calls from six major financial institutions since March 2010.
Before the beginning of the trial, prosecutor Thomas Brown said: "Samarth Agrawal is a thief, but not a common thief, he did not steal money, gold or diamonds. He stole something that has much more value. He has stolen a powerful tool that can generate millions of dollars in financial markets. "
Samarth Agrawal was convicted for stolen property transportation and theft of trade secrets and the sentence is expected during the month of February 2011. He faces up to five years in prison and risk expulsion and return to India after his sentence is served.
Early in July 2009, Sergey Aleynikov, computer genius, had been arrested in New York and released on bail. He was accused by Goldman Sachs of theft of trading software secrets.
