Ian Hannam, better known as the “king of mining” after advising on some of the biggest deals in the past two decades, including BHP’s London listing through its merger with Billiton, is fighting to save his reputation, reports City A.M.
Hannam quit his position as the chairman of equity capital markets at JPMorgan yesterday, after being accused of passing on confidential information about a client, in breach of financial rules.
The English Financial Services Authority (FSA) said Hannam disclosed inside information about Heritage Oil, a JPMorgan client he was guiding, in two 2008 letters to a potential buyer of a stake in the group. One email contained information about a potential offer for Heritage and the other described a potential oil find.
“I strongly believe, and have been advised by my legal counsel, that the FSA’s conclusions are wrong and I look forward to challenging them in an independent tribunal,” he said in a statement, adding that he had resigned because “appealing [against] the case while still at the firm would be an unfair distraction to my clients and colleagues”.
Learn more about Hannam in this profile from The Guardian.
