Russian businessman with ties to Putin convicted in US hack and trading scheme

A Russian millionaire businessman with ties to the Kremlin was convicted in US court of a $90 million insider trading scheme.

Russian national Vladislav Klyushin was convicted by a US jury Tuesday of hacking secret SEC documents as part of a $90 million dollar insider trading scheme.

The 42 year old wealthy businessman had been charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission with conspiracy, wire fraud and securities fraud and stood trial in a Boston federal court.

The US prosecutors said Klyushin, along with four other Russian nationals, hacked into the computer networks of two US companies responsible for releasing the quarterly earnings reports of hundreds of publicly traded companies.

The hackers obtained the earnings reports before they were released to investors, using the insider information to make trades netting them million of dollars in profits.

Klyushin, the only one apprehended by US officials, is the owner of the Moscow-based software company M-13, known for working with the Russian government.

The other co-conspirators remain at large, including Ivan Ermakov, a former Russian military intelligence officer who worked at M-13.

Ermakov is also wanted by the US government for his alleged involvement in hacking schemes to interfere in the 2016 US presidential election and target international anti-doping agencies.

Klyushin was extradited to the United States from Switzerland in March 2021, after he was captured during a planned skiing holiday.