Final answer:
Persons violating insider trading laws can face prison, the obligation to return illegal profits, and treble damages but not FINRA fines, as insider trading is a federal offense prosecuted by federal authorities, not FINRA. The correct option is a.
Step-by-step explanation:
Persons who violate federal insider trading regulations can face serious repercussions, but not all of the options listed are necessarily penalties for insider trading.
The penalties that violators of insider trading laws are subject to include prison terms, the return of profits made from the illegal trades, and potentially treble (triple) damages, which is a civil penalty that amounts to three times the profit gained or loss avoided from the insider trading.
However, amongst the given choices, ‘FINRA fines’ is the exception. While FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) oversees and enforces rules against insider trading for its members, its authority does not extend to imposing fines specifically for insider trading violations.