<<Yes Insiders exercising options is insiders buying more shares.>>

Interesting, that is generally not the case in U.S. It would typically only be considered insider trading if you exercised and then sold.

Tax rules in Canada are such that when you exercise, the CRA nails you for a gain based on the price of the stock on the day you exercise, whether you actually sold to realize the gain or not.

For this reason (a) if the insider actually sells shares after exercise it is not such a bad thing. They have the tax obligation after all. But (b) if they do not sell it's a really good sign. It means the person feels the stock will hold or gain.

So my thinking is that even if exercising is not violating blackout rules, extending the expiry date is a good thing to do because it gives the option holder the option to sell, which would be a violation of blackout rules. It's the fair thing to do.