The Odd Couple gang up on insider trading!

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U.S. Representative Lois Frankel serves the 22nd district of Florida. And herself. According to an April 28, 2023, financial disclosure report, (below) Frankel first sold shares of the bank on March 16 following SVB’s collapse. Just days later, on March 22, Frankel also purchased shares in JP Morgan Chase & Co, according to the report.  

It remained unknown exactly how much stock was traded at each time, though the filing specified values between $1,001 and $15,000 for each trade. Both trades were sub-holdings of a Morgan Stanley IRA, according to the disclosure. 

The congresswoman will not be prosecuted.

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers have unveiled a bill that would prohibit members of Congress from owning and trading individual stocks, a proposal aimed at restoring public trust by preventing lawmakers from profiting off insider information.

In a sign that the measure enjoys support across the ideological spectrum, the Bipartisan Restoring Faith in Government Act is sponsored by GOP Reps. Matt Gaetz and Brian Fitzpatrick and Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Raja Krishnamoorthi.

The bill would also prohibit members’ spouses and any dependents from owning individual stocks or making trades, and require all members or covered family members who currently own individual stocks to divest or place them in a “qualified blind trust.”