Hong Kong’s financial watchdog, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), has charged thirteen suspects of market manipulation in a joint operation with the local police.
Local brokers were also prohibited from processing assets held in trading accounts related to five persons, who were possibly involved in a social media ramp-and-dump scam. The SFC added that the fraudulent scheme targeted the shares of two publicly-listed companies between October 2018 and May 2019. Among them, two face additional charges of money laundering together with eight other defendants.
Additionally, the brokers are required to notify the SFC if they receive such instructions from their blocked clients.
“ The alleged syndicate members organised and executed “ramp-and-dump” schemes in the shares of two Hong Kong-listed companies (target stocks) by using different social media platforms and manipulated the trading of a large volume of those shares through the use of a substantial number of nominee accounts. In implementing the schemes, the syndicate members were alleged to have committed offences involving market manipulation and money laundering,” the statement reads.
The HK watchdog did identify who it suspects to have committed this market misconduct, and highlighted that they have conspired with others to use multiple nominee accounts “to corner the shares of the target stocks” and drive their prices up.
At a later stage, the scam was alleged to induce investors to purchase…
