Not to say he’s innocent, but insiders can also trigger market crashes just by selling their stock. There are public records of substantial holdings by company insiders and while I don’t think they’re made available immediately, they are updated periodically and people can and do read into it.
That’s part of why they usually deputize a brokerage to periodically sell a fraction of their holdings at intervals.
It’s been a long while since I paid any attention to this but I do believe I saw at least a couple of instances of an insider triggering weakness in their stock just by increasing the rate of sale of their holdings.
To wit: Bill Gates did a bunch of press before starting his foundation to make it clear that him selling MS shares was not about concerns over MS’s future but that he needed a shitload of money for other pursuits.
And Warren Buffet would use many frontmen to slowly buy shares without triggering a buying frenzy. You can’t just buy or sell 3% of a company without causing drama.
That’s part of why they usually deputize a brokerage to periodically sell a fraction of their holdings at intervals.
It’s been a long while since I paid any attention to this but I do believe I saw at least a couple of instances of an insider triggering weakness in their stock just by increasing the rate of sale of their holdings.