The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong has banned Ha Po Kwan, a former licensed representative of Primas Asset Management Limited (PAML), from re-entering the industry for 12 months
The ban is effective from 14 June 2024 to 13 June 2025.
The disciplinary action follows an SFC investigation which found that in June 2021, Ha, a director of PAML at the material time, created two false documents by altering information on the strike price or maturity date in the original product flashes of two accumulator contracts. He then sent the two false product flashes to a client of PAML to mislead the client about the maturity date or strike price of the accumulator contracts he had bought for the client’s account that he managed with full discretionary authority and served as the relationship manager.
Ha also used his personal email account for business communication with the same client. By doing so, Ha’s conduct circumvented PAML’s internal policies and prevented it from properly monitoring his operation of the client’s account.
The regulator concluded that Ha is guilty of misconduct and is not fit and proper to be a licensed person.
In deciding the disciplinary sanction against Ha, the SFC has taken into account a variety of factors, including his conduct in creating and sending the false product flashes to the client was deliberate and dishonest, as well as his co-operation in the SFC’s investigation and his otherwise clean disciplinary record.
