CME Says Prohibited From Releasing Info About Any Individual's Trading -- Update

By Josh Beckerman 

CME Group Inc,. said Wednesday that it is prohibited by law from releasing information about any individual's trading, including the U.K. man who was arrested this week for allegedly contributing to the 2010 "flash crash."

The exchange operator said it concluded, along with regulators, that the futures market wasn't to blame for the May 6, 2010, flash crash, during which the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 1,000 points in a matter of minutes.

However, CME said if new information has come to light, it looks forward to discussing it with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and supports the agency's actions to prosecute those who attempt to engage in fraud.

CME's comments come a day after U.K.-based trader Navinder Singh Sarao was arrested in connection with allegations from U.S. authorities that he manipulated financial markets and contributed to the flash crash.

Prosecutors and regulators said Mr. Sarao used a souped-up version of commercially available software to manipulate a stock-market index futures contract, laying the groundwork for the index's decline, in which hundreds of stocks momentarily lost nearly all their value.

Authorities said Mr. Sarao earned $40 million in profits from 2010 to 2014 through alleged manipulations.

Mr. Sarao is fighting an extradition request by U.S. authorities.

Write to Josh Beckerman at [e-mail]

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