Steven A. Cohen's SAC Capital Advisors hedge fund pleaded guilty to fraud charges Friday (November 8) as part of a $1.2 billion (£750m) deal to resolve a long-running insider trading investigation, but it did not completely resolve the certainty of the fates of the firm or its principals.

Adding a layer of complexity to the plea, the judge on the case reserved her decision about whether to accept the plea until after reviewing the plea agreement along with a report prepared for the sentencing.

The lead prosecutor also said had the case gone to trial evidence would have come to light of misconduct by more than just the six people who had previously pled guilty - and became the basis of SAC's plea.

U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain said she would refrain from deciding about whether to accept the pleas until after she read the pre-sentencing report. She scheduled the sentencing hearing for March 14.

As part of the plea, SAC listed former employees who had been convicted of insider trading charges and described their offenses.

Under the plea agreement SAC reached with prosecutors, the hedge fund has agreed to pay $900 million in penalties to resolve the criminal case unveiled against it in July.

A federal judge on Wednesday signed-off on another $900 million judgment in the companion civil forfeiture action filed at the same time against SAC.

SAC has reserved its right to withdraw its plea if Swain does not impose the penalties negotiated with prosecutors.

Presented by Adam Justice