A former managing director at SG Cowen, the US broking arm of Société Générale, has been charged by US regulators with insider trading and fraud for his role in generating $4m (€3.1m) in trading gains for his company.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, the US regulator said in a statement that Guillaume Pollet allegedly committed fraud by short-selling shares in companies based on non-public information before certain private stock offerings.