IBM executive on leave after arrest

NEW YORK: IBM placed senior executive Robert Moffat on leave of absence after he was arrested in the largest ever hedge fund insider-trading scheme.

Moffat, senior vice-president and head of International Business Machines Corp's systems and technology group, was charged with passing on insider information to a hedge fund.

He had worked for IBM since 1978 and was one of several executives who analysts said could have been a possible heir to IBM Chief Executive Sam Palmisano.