FORMER Dow Jones & Co director David Li reached a tentative agreement with the United States securities regulators to pay more than US$8 million to settle insider-trading allegations, the Financial Times reported, without citing anyone.

Li would neither admit nor deny wrongdoing with regard to allegations of insider trading during the takeover battle for Dow Jones in 2007, the FT said, citing people familiar with talks between Li and the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it didn't identify.

The details may change before a settlement is approved by the SEC's commissioners, the FT said.