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SCMP Reporter

The Growth Enterprise Market continues to dazzle.

Take Codebank, the e-commerce solutions company that pinned its hopes on an e-learning e-xplosion in China.

It is of course also known as the company that misplaced the HK$10 million it raised from its listing in December 2001.

Oops.

And a tough e-lesson it has turned out to be.

Also followed by a litany of d-e-sasters.

The company admitted yesterday it is in serious financial difficulty - HK$15 million in claims and a winding-up petition, for starters.

But the board is fighting back with a 'corporate re-engineering programme.'

It has even come up with a novel way of motivating its productive employees: changing their contracts.

Instead of a boring salary-based approach, workers will find a more incentive-oriented one.

How virtual. Use of the non-existent company jet?

Unfortunately this approach isn't going to go down very well with the people investigating the missing HK$10 million.

A probe into the vanished funds is nearly over. But we may never find out the results.

Codebank can't pay the investigators' fees.

CHARITY DISPARITY

Q: What is the difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion?

A: Jail.

And on the topic of car-gate, a reader has kindly brought another element of the Antony Leung Kam-chung scandal to our attention.

First, the financial secretary evaded his own vehicle registration taxes by buying a Lexus before budget day.

Then he offered to donate HK$100,000 to the Community Chest to make up for the slip of judgment.

And now he's increased the sum. It seems the saving he made on the car was more than originally stated.

But who will be checking Mr Leung's tax assessment this year?

After all, we presume he won't be seeking a deduction for his charitable donation.

SWITCHING OFF

Merrill Lynch has discovered an innovative way to silence critics - stop subscribing to them.

From next week, employees of Merrill's brokerage operation will no longer be able to watch CNBC on their computers.

This in part is due to the repartee of some CNBC commentators, who have been less than flattering toward Merrill, according to The New York Times.

James Wiggins, a Merrill spokesman, said the desire for the news channel change came from the brokers themselves. Other employees such as stock traders and investment bankers won't be affected.

As an alternative, Merrill will provide its brokers with Bloomberg Television.

Ah well, there's always the radio.

BUS-FARE BUSTS

The streets of Hong Kong have become a hotbed of vicious criminal activity.

Recently we brought your attention to the heinous HK$1 thief.

The cogs of justice took some time out from busting drugs rings and homicidal maniacs to rid our streets of some real criminals, for a change.

A court fined the HK$1 thief HK$500 for nicking the coin from a teenage boy. More precisely, for asking for the cash to make up his bus fare. The boy gave it to him.

But one conviction is not enough - it looks as if the police have assigned a task force to combat petty bus-fare bandits.

Three teenage boys - one Japanese, one English and one Chinese - recently spent an impressive eight hours being interrogated for a similar offence - 'stealing' HK$10.

The trio asked three local boys in Sha Tin Park for the sum to get the bus home.

Some plain-clothed police happened to be walking by and made the bust.

And a prosecution looks likely.

A crime against sanity.



Money missing as code spells d-e-saster