Janus Vice President on Leave Amid Probe

An executive vice president at Janus Capital Group Inc. has taken a leave of absence as the mutual fund company works with regulators to resolve allegations of improper trading.

The Denver-based company said Monday that it was evaluating Lars Soderberg’s future role. Soderberg has been in charge of institutional services, which is the sales side of the company, and has been a member of the company’s management committee.

Janus spokeswoman Shelley Peterson declined to comment further.

New York Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer, the Securities and Exchange Commission, Colorado Atty. Gen. Ken Salazar and others have been examining Janus policies and arrangements allowing market timing -- a type of rapid, in-and-out trading that can skim profits from long-term fund shareholders.

The practice is not illegal, but Janus policies discouraged it.

Janus has disclosed 10 active market-timing arrangements, all since ended, and has said it would return to shareholders $31.5 million gained from market-timing trading.

Janus officials have said they were working with regulators to resolve the allegations. Dollar figures for any possible settlement have not been disclosed.

A number of Janus employees have resigned since the investigations began. In November, Richard Garland quit as head of Janus International amid growing scrutiny of the $7-trillion mutual fund industry. Investigators say he may have approved improper trading arrangements.

Garland approved expanding Canary Capital’s agreement with Janus, allowing market-timing trades, Spitzer said in a Sept. 3 complaint in New York Supreme Court.

Shares of Janus rose 10 cents to $16.58 on the New York Stock Exchange.