Martin Shkreli

Martin Shkreli is an American entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager known for sharply raising the price of Daraprim and for securities fraud convictions.

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Daraprim: Daraprim is the brand name for pyrimethamine, a drug used to treat toxoplasmosis. Shkreli’s company acquired its rights and raised its U.S. price from $13.50 to $750 per tablet in 2015.
Drug pricing: Drug pricing is the setting and negotiation of prices for medicines across manufacturers, payers, and patients. The Daraprim episode drew national scrutiny to how a sole-source medicine could be priced.
Preet Bharara: Preet Bharara is an American lawyer who served as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York from 2009 to 2017. His office prosecuted Shkreli’s securities-fraud case.
Pharmaceutical price gouging: Pharmaceutical price gouging is a sharp price increase widely judged excessive or exploitative, especially for an essential medicine. The phrase captures public criticism of Daraprim’s new price, not the securities-fraud charges.
Turing Pharmaceuticals: Turing Pharmaceuticals was a pharmaceutical company founded by Martin Shkreli in 2015. It acquired Daraprim and became the company most associated with his price increase.
Pyrimethamine: Pyrimethamine is an antiparasitic medicine used with other drugs to treat toxoplasmosis and certain other infections. Daraprim contains pyrimethamine, an old medicine whose sudden price rise sharpened public attention.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is the federal agency that regulates securities markets and enforces federal securities laws. The SEC brought a civil case against Shkreli alongside the criminal prosecution.
Insider trading: Insider trading is trading securities in breach of a duty while using material, nonpublic information. Shkreli’s conviction involved fraud and misrepresentation, not insider trading.
Securities fraud: Securities fraud is deception or misrepresentation involving the purchase or sale of financial securities. Shkreli was convicted of securities fraud tied to his hedge funds and Retrophin.
Toxoplasmosis: Toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. Daraprim treats toxoplasmosis, including severe cases in people with weakened immune systems.