The SEC has charged Houston resident with insider trading for using non-public info he obtained from his wife, a manager with BP, without her knowledge, about the company’s planned merger with TravelCenters of America

The SEC has charged Houston resident with insider trading for using non-public info he obtained from his wife, a manager with BP, without her knowledge, about the company’s planned merger with TravelCenters of America.


Tyler Loudon, aged 42, has pleaded guilty to securities fraud in Houston federal court and has agreed to forfeit the $1.7 million in illicit gains he obtained, as announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas on Thursday.

Authorities stated that Loudon's wife was unaware of his trades.

"We allege that Mr. Loudon exploited his remote working situation and his wife's trust to profit from information he knew was confidential," said Eric Werner, regional director of the SEC's Fort Worth Regional Office. "The SEC remains dedicated to prosecuting such misconduct."

In addition to the financial penalty, Loudon faces a maximum fine of $250,000.

On the same day, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a separate civil case against Loudon for insider trading, which he has agreed to resolve.

According to the SEC's complaint, Loudon's wife was employed as a mergers and acquisitions manager at BP when she was involved in the company's planned acquisition of truck stop operator TravelCenters of America.

Authorities reported that Loudon purchased 46,450 TravelCenters shares without his wife's knowledge over a 1.5-month period after overhearing several work-related conversations about the planned $1.3 billion TravelCenters acquisition while she was working remotely.

According to the SEC, Loudon surprised his wife by confessing that he had bought the shares to enable her to work shorter hours by earning enough money.