"Morgan Stanley Settles Block Trading Probe with $249 Million Payment"

Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay $249 million in penalties to settle investigations into deceptive practices in handling large stock trades from 2018 to 2021. The investigations found that at least one employee misused confidential information in connection with block trades, leading to a nonprosecution agreement with the government. A former employee, Pawan Passi, admitted to sharing confidential information with other investors to trade ahead of block sales. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) stated that Morgan Stanley had profited from the misuse of customer information and engaged in front-running. Despite the penalties, Morgan Stanley cooperated with the investigation and implemented remedial measures.