SAC Capital Advisors was criticized for its lack of contrition after pleading guilty on four counts of securities fraud and one count of wire fraud. The hedge fund agreed to pay the Securities and Exchange Commission USD1.2 billion in fines and forfeitures as part of the settlement.

Some believe that SAC's lack of contrition contrasted so much with its admission of guilt. US prosecutors have even gone to the extent of calling it a "no-admit" plea, permitting SAC to plead guilty without acknowldeging their legal infractions.

US prosecutors articulated that had the case gone to a full blown trial, evidence would have shown that the insider trading at SAC was not limited to a "tiny fraction" of individuals, but was rather made possible by institutional failures.

The behavior exhibited by SAC, as well as other entities facing SEC charges for that matter, wouldn't really come as unexpected. Today, as in the past, "financial middlemen" such as hedge funds are indirectly regulated-criticized yet tolerated.