AI startup CEO pleaded guilty in U.S. to trading on insider tips from lawyers

The founder and chief executive of Abu Dhabi-based AppliedAI, Arya Bolurfrushan, pleaded guilty in June 2025 to conspiring to commit securities fraud after U.S. prosecutors said he traded on insider tips provided by lawyers working at major law firms. Court records unsealed Monday show Bolurfrushan — a former Goldman Sachs banker who founded AppliedAI — reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors in Boston that included a recommended two-year prison sentence and a forfeiture of $954,496, the amount prosecutors say he derived from the scheme.

Direct quote

"Jordan Estes, his lawyer at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, declined to comment."

Context and details

Prosecutors allege Bolurfrushan was recruited into a long-running insider trading network in 2023 while he was in Dubai. The tips were passed to him by Nicolo Nourafchan — a former associate at Sidley Austin, Latham & Watkins and Goodwin Procter — and Nourafchan’s partner, personal-injury attorney Robert Yadgarov. Authorities say the arrangement involved Bolurfrushan trading on confidential merger information in exchange for a share of profits sent back to the lawyers.

• In one episode cited by prosecutors and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Nourafchan accessed electronic documents in September 2023 about Goodwin Procter client Orchard Therapeutics’ planned acquisition by Kyowa Kirin Co. Ltd., then tipped Bolurfrushan, who purchased Orchard securities ahead of the announcement.
• The SEC said Bolurfrushan earned approximately $950,000 in trading profits from the Orchard trades and passed along about $60,000 to Nourafchan and Yadgarov.
• Charging documents further allege Bolurfrushan traded again in mid-2024 based on a tip that investment firm Sixth Street planned to acquire insurer Enstar for $5.1 billion.

Bolurfrushan entered his guilty plea in June 2025 as part of a cooperation effort by prosecutors building cases against dozens of participants in the scheme. Nine other defendants pleaded guilty in secret proceedings in previous years, while prosecutors have publicly charged at least 30 people, including Nourafchan, who was indicted in May alongside others accused of using confidential merger information to profit in the market. Nourafchan and Yadgarov have pleaded not guilty and remain awaiting trial on securities fraud and related charges.

The SEC concurrently settled civil claims against Bolurfrushan related to the same conduct, further underscoring the government’s parallel civil and criminal enforcement strategy in insider trading matters tied to law-firm leak investigations. Prosecutors’ plea agreement with Bolurfrushan includes a recommendation of two years’ imprisonment and the nearly $955,000 forfeiture figure reflecting the trading gains attributed to him.

Outlook

The unsealing of Bolurfrushan’s plea adds momentum to an ongoing probe that has targeted traders and law-firm insiders for allegedly disseminating confidential deal information. With Nourafchan and Yadgarov proceeding to trial and multiple other defendants either cooperating or facing charges, prosecutors are positioning themselves to pursue additional trials and potential plea agreements that could reveal broader networks of tipsters and traders. The unfolding cases are likely to continue prompting scrutiny of law-firm information controls and the responsibilities of outside advisors and counterparties in handling confidential merger planning.