Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong

SFC reprimands and imposes fine on Yiu Choi and Yip Mou Lam for continuing to publish false and misleading advertisements after repeated warnings 25 November 2004 SFC reprimanded BRIGHT International (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd. (Yaocai) and Ye Maolin (male), and each was ordered to pay a fine of 50,000 yuan. The SFC alleges that Yao Cai and Ye Jing still published false and misleading advertisements after repeated warnings from Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company Limited (HKSCC) and the SFC. Yip is the managing director of Yaocai (Note 1). The SFC found that Bright Talent had published 13 advertisements in two newspapers between 17 March and 8 April 2003 containing false and misleading statements. The advertisements incorrectly stated that Bright Talent's clients could pay directly to CCASS, a subsidiary of HKSCC, for settlement with Bright Talent. All of these advertisements were written by Ye. After the relevant staff became aware of the first advertisement published by Bright Talent, the SFC and HKSCC immediately informed Bright Bright and Yip that the information published was incorrect. CCASS does not accept direct payments from individual investors to settle their trades. CCASS acts only as a facility provider for brokerage houses and investors to handle the settlement of trades between each other. Settlement funds will not be paid directly to CCASS, and brokerage firms and investors are responsible for monitoring their settlement by themselves. Notwithstanding the above warnings, Ye continued to arrange for Bright Talent to publish the misleading statements. The SFC therefore considered that the fit and proper qualifications of Yaocai and Yip had been questioned, and decided to reprimand and impose fines. Mr. Alan Linning, Executive Director of the Regulatory Enforcement Department of the Securities Regulatory Commission, said: "A brokerage firm should not distribute any false and misleading information in its advertisements. Anyone related to the management of a brokerage firm, even if it is not a licensed person, If the circumstances show that he is not a fit and proper person to hold the position, he cannot escape legal responsibility, especially if the brokerage willfully ignore the warning issued by the regulator, which will aggravate the seriousness of the misconduct. After considering the "Disciplinary Penalty Guidelines" , we believe that public censure and fines are the most appropriate penalties in line with the circumstances of this case." End Editor's Notes: 1. Bright Talent is licensed for Type 1 (Dealing in Securities), Type 4 (Advising on Securities) , Type 6 (advising on corporate finance) and Type 9 (asset management) regulated activities licensed corporations. Yip is not a licensed representative of Bright Talent, but is the managing director of Bright Talent. According to the SFO, the managing director of a securities firm may also be subject to disciplinary action even if he is not a licensed person. Yip is only licensed to operate Bright Futures and Commodities Limited as a responsible officer for Type 2 (dealing in futures contracts), Type 5 (advising on futures contracts) and Type 9 (asset management) regulated activities business carried out. Last updated on August 01, 2012