Hong Kong slaps Morgan Stanley with $2.4 million fine
24 August 2016 Hong Kong
Image: Shutterstock
Morgan Stanley has been fined HKD 18.5 million (USD 2.4 million) by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for “internal control failures”, including inadequate disclosure of short selling orders.
The SFC has charged the Hong Kong branch of the bank with failing to correctly disclose roughly 29,000 short selling orders between January and November 2014, as well as breaching the daily position limit for one stock option contracts by more than 300 contracts in February 2015.
The investigation into the bank’s conduct also revealed instances of undisclosed conflict of interest and neglecting to follow the instructions of an asset manager to report large open positions.
The SFC noted that Morgan Stanley had cooperated with the regulator during the investigation and had no prior record of misconduct related to these failings.
Morgan Stanley also agreed to consult with an independent reviewer to improve its internal controls to ensure future compliance Hong Kong’s financial regulatory requirements.
The bank has yet to respond to a request for comment.
The SFC has charged the Hong Kong branch of the bank with failing to correctly disclose roughly 29,000 short selling orders between January and November 2014, as well as breaching the daily position limit for one stock option contracts by more than 300 contracts in February 2015.
The investigation into the bank’s conduct also revealed instances of undisclosed conflict of interest and neglecting to follow the instructions of an asset manager to report large open positions.
The SFC noted that Morgan Stanley had cooperated with the regulator during the investigation and had no prior record of misconduct related to these failings.
Morgan Stanley also agreed to consult with an independent reviewer to improve its internal controls to ensure future compliance Hong Kong’s financial regulatory requirements.
The bank has yet to respond to a request for comment.
NO FEE, NO RISK
100% ON RETURNS If you invest in only one securities finance news source this year, make sure it is your free subscription to Securities Finance Times
100% ON RETURNS If you invest in only one securities finance news source this year, make sure it is your free subscription to Securities Finance Times
