As per a Reuters report quoting Wall Street Journal, market regulator SEBI has found that Bank of America had shared confidential information about a $180 million block trade of a stock and misled regulators about the same. The Reuters report cited WSJ sources with regards to the details of a transaction undertaken in 2024.
Reuters, in the report, mentioned that it “could not immediately verify the report. SEBI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment outside business hours. BofA declined to comment.” FinancialExress.com has not been able to independently confirm the report either.
According to the Reuters report quoting WSJ, SEBI conducted an investigation into the conduct of BofA’s domestic securities unit, which managed the stock sale of Aditya Birla Sun Life Asset Management in March 2024,.
Key SEBI concerns with regards to BoFA transaction
The investigation revealed that the bank’s deal team, which held confidential price-sensitive information, had “directly/indirectly” contacted potential investors, Reuters added, attributing it to the WSJ report.
Further, the news agency said that BofA’s broking arm, research team, and its Asia-Pacific syndicate team shared valuation reports and other confidential information related to the stock sale with investors, according to a notice dated October 30, 2025, reviewed by Reuters.
“The conduct highlights the failure of (the bank’s) deal team to maintain Chinese walls with broking and research arms, impacting the safekeeping of confidential information and internal controls,” the markets regulator said as quoted by Reuters attributing to WSJ.
According to the WSJ report, SEBI further added that during the investigation, BofA concealed crucial material facts and also made false statements, the Reuters report added.
Reuters, citing one of its sources, said that the bank, while not acknowledging guilt, has filed an application for the settlement of these charges. It added that the application remains under review.
The matter was first reported in 2024 through a whistleblower complaint. Reuters, in the report, mentioned that it “could not immediately verify the report. SEBI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment outside business hours. BofA declined to comment.” FinancialExress.com has not been able to independently confirm the report either.
Investors named in SEBI’s notice
Reuters had reported in 2024 that three BofA investment bankers in India left the company as it probed the allegations. According to the Reuters report, SEBI cited BofA’s interactions with three potential investors, including HDFC Bank, Norges Bank (Norway’s central bank), and Enam Holdings.
SEBI said that BofA teams, in violation of the country’s insider trading rules, sought investor feedback before the formal announcement of the share sale. The bank was appointed to manage the transaction on February 28, 2024, while the formal announcement of the share sale was made on March 18, 2025.