Hong Kong sees first conviction for inside trading
Hong Kong's first criminal trial for insider trading has resulted in the conviction of a former investment banker and four other defendants. Ma Hon Yeung, a former vice president at BNP Paribas Peregrine Capital, passed confidential information to his girlfriend and three family members about the proposed privatisation of Egana Jewellry & Pearls, a matter on which he was working. The four tippees all traded in Egana shares before the company announced its privatisation plans in July 2006.The five defendants will be sentenced on 1 April.
March 12, 2009 at 01:55 AM
2 minute read
Hong Kong's first criminal trial for insider trading has resulted in the conviction of a former investment banker and four other defendants.
Ma Hon Yeung, a former vice president at BNP Paribas Peregrine Capital, passed confidential information to his girlfriend and three family members about the proposed privatisation of Egana Jewellry & Pearls, a matter on which he was working. The four tippees all traded in Egana shares before the company announced its privatisation plans in July 2006.
The five defendants will be sentenced on 1 April.
The case, which was heard in Hong Kong District Court, was brought by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) under the 2003 law that for the first time made insider trading a crime. Insider trading was previously considered a civil offence and was rarely punished. The crime now carries a 10-year maximum prison term.
"This case, being the first indictable trial for insider dealing, is a landmark decision," said Mark Steward, the SFC's enforcement director, in the statement announcing the convictions.
A spokesman for the SFC said the agency would not be disclosing the amount Ma and his fellow defendants illegally profited.
The SFC has a number of other prosecutions pending, the most high-profile of which is that of former Morgan Stanley investment banker Du Jun.
Du, a former managing director with Morgan Stanley's China group, was arrested last year for allegedly buying shares of CITIC Resources Holdings worth HK$86m (£8m) just prior to the announcement of an oilfield acquisition by CITIC on which Du and Morgan Stanley had advised.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Singapore Leaders Stress the Importance of the Rule of Law Amid Geopolitical Tensions
Can Law Firms Avoid Landing on the 'Enemy' List During the Trump Administration?
5 minute read
Letter From Asia: Will Big Law Ever Bother to Understand Asia Again?
Trending Stories
- 1DC Bar’s Proposed Anti-Discrimination, Harassment Conduct Rule Sees More Pushback
- 2California's Chief Justice Starts Third Year With Questions About Fires, Trump and AI
- 3Justin Baldoni Sues Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds for $400M in New Step in 'It Ends With Us' Fight
- 4Top Leadership Changes Coming for NJ Attorney General's Office
- 5SCOTUSBlog Co-Founder Tom Goldstein Misused Law Firm Funds, According to Federal Indictment
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
