ASIC in their statement said, "The charges relate to Mr Bowen’s disposal of 5,617,554 shares in Vocus Group Limited (Vocus) on 4 June 2019.
"ASIC alleges that at that time, Mr Bowen was in possession of inside information concerning the likely withdrawal of a proposal by EQT Infrastructure IV Fund to acquire all shares in Vocus, prior to this information being announced to the market."
Bowen resigned from the Vocus Board in March 2018, being replaced by Bob Mansfield.
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Around the time of the trade Vocus was the subject of a bid by Swedish equity firm EQT for the firm valuing the company at around $3.3 billion. iTWire reported that on 4 June 2019 Vocus issued a statement to the ASX that said, "Following an accelerated period of due diligence, EQT has decided not to proceed with the transaction outlined in the indicative proposal. Accordingly, discussions with EQT in relation to the indicative proposal have now ceased."
A charge of insider trading carries a maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment.
A committal mention hearing has been listed for December 7 in the Magistrates Court of Victoria.
This first appeared in the subscription newsletter CommsWire on 15 September 2021.