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By Nishant Kumar
LONDON (Reuters) - A former equities trader at Schroders, one of Britain's largest asset managers, was told to reappear before a higher London court later this month after his first hearing on Friday in an insider dealing case.
Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said last month 38-year-old former trader Damian Frank Clarke committed the alleged offences, which relate to share trading and spread bets between 2003 and 2012.
Clarke, who appeared before district judge Kenneth Grant at Westminster Magistrates' Court dressed in a light blue shirt and dark blue tie, is facing nine counts of insider dealing charges.
Following a brief hearing, Clarke was told to reappear before Southwark Crown Court on July 18 after his lawyer said he did not want to plead guilty. His lawyer at UK law firm CCW Solicitors could not be reached for a comment.
Clarke was arrested in early 2013 after police and prosecutors searched properties in London and other parts of England. He left Schroders, a 200-year-old London institution, in 2013. Schroders is not facing any investigation.
The FCA, which has been stepping up the fight against market abuse, has secured 24 convictions for insider dealing since 2009 and is prosecuting seven others for the offence.
Insider dealing is punishable in Britain by a maximum jail sentence of seven years or an unlimited fine.
(Reporting by Nishant Kumar; Editing by David Holmes)