Liberal-leaning think tank the Institute of Public Affairs has taken insider trader Oliver Curtis as its cause celebre, arguing that white-collar criminals should literally pay for their crimes rather than face prison.

Such a move would remove prison as a deterrence for many corporate criminals, including the executives jailed over the collapse of HIH Insurance.

The IPA posted a column on Thursday by staffer Andrew Bushnell that said: "Curtis should have to pay a fine sufficiently large that it hurts him and communicates the public's outrage." It also appeared in the Australian Financial Review.

Curtis, 30, husband of publicist Roxy Jacenko, was found guilty of insider trading last Thursday and released on bail pending Justice Lucy McCallum's decision on his sentence.