Directors fined for breach

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) successfully prosecuted an investment company and two of its directors for commodities trading and giving investment advice without being registered by the commission.

Cornucopia International Trading Inc (Citi) and directors Dexter Patrick Yeh and Sze Chit-hay pleaded guilty to six charges at South Kowloon Magistracy on Monday.

They were fined $6,000 each and ordered to pay costs of $21,000 to the SFC. The prosecutions stemmed from an investigation by the SFC which found that Citi had been soliciting customers for an unregistered investment programme from August 26, 1996, to August 8, 1997, through the two directors.

The programme purported to invest in 44 different items of securities, currencies, precious metals, commodities and indices.

The SFC found neither Citi, Yeh, Sze or the investment programme were registered with the commission as required.