Reply #22: SEC official: some backdating "clearly illegal"

[UpInArms]

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=bus...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Some stock options backdating now being investigated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was "clearly illegal," a departing SEC commissioner said on Thursday.

Cynthia Glassman, a Republican who will leave the SEC next week after nearly 4-1/2 years as a commissioner, did not identify any companies the SEC is investigating, or when enforcement actions might be brought.

"What I will say about the backdating issue is some of the conduct appears to have been clearly illegal," Glassman said in what is expected to be her final public appearance as a commissioner.

She noted that companies' disclosure of options practices is one of the central issues in the widening probe and the SEC is "looking into whether or not the conduct was appropriate."

Glassman's comments were some of the strongest to date from officials investigating more than 50 companies to determine if their option granting practices violated the law.

Although the SEC and Justice Department have declined to confirm or deny any specific investigations, the probes have been disclosed in company filings and announcements. Companies that have said they are being investigated range from insurer UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH.N: Quote, Profile, Research), which has warned it may have to restate earnings by up to $286 million, to technology companies such as Monster Worldwide Inc. (MNST.O: Quote, Profile, Research).

At issue are concerns whether companies manipulated the grant dates of options to boost their value to executives who received them.

...more...