[Hong Kong] SFC
reprimands and fines Black Marble Securities Limited $1.8 million for internal
control failings and regulatory breaches
SFC
News, 31 Mar 2021
The SFC has reprimanded and fined Black
Marble Securities Limited $1.8 million for internal control failings and
breaches of the SFC’s Code of Conduct. The SFC found deficiencies in the
internal controls of Black Marble Securities, as there are inadequate internal
controls for monitoring trading activities in client accounts and no procedures
to ensure that its compliance manual and other internal policies and procedures
were adequately and properly communicated to all staff members.
Full text: click here
[Singapore] Two
individuals charged for offences under the Central Provident Fund Act
MAS Enforcement, 31 Mar 2021
Mr Chen Zhihao Samuel and Mr Wong Tuck Wai
Raymond were charged for offences under the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Act. Mr
Chen and Mr Wong are accused of carrying out a scheme, which provides members
with the option to invest their CPF savings in financial instruments, to
defraud the CPF Board between 1 September 2017 and 8 January 2019. The scheme
involved Mr Chen withdrawing funds from his CPF Ordinary Account, by incurring
trading losses when he bought shares from Mr Wong at artificially high prices
and sold the shares to Mr Wong at artificially low prices.
Full text: click here
[Singapore] Banks to
cease issuance of SOR derivatives and Sibor-linked financial products by Sept
Business Times, 31 Mar
2021
Financial institutions will have to cease
the use of the Swap Offer Rate (SOR) in new derivatives contracts by
end-September 2021, in a freshly announced timeline to further push the industry
towards the Singapore Overnight Rate Average (Sora) as the main interest rate
benchmark. The Steering Committee for SOR and Sibor Transition to Sora (SC-STS)
also recommended that financial institutions cease the use of Singapore
Interbank Offered Rate (Sibor) in new contracts by end-September.
Full text: click here; Announcement: click here
[Hong Kong] Circular to Money
Service Operators - Questionnaire on Use of Bank Account
C&ED Circular, 1 Apr
2021
The Customs and Excise Department is
conducting a thematic review of the delivery channels used by Money Service
Operators in processing the money service transaction with a focus on the use
of bank account in the sector. This facilitates the work of C&ED in
identifying any existing or potential money laundering and terrorist financing
risk that the sector is exposed in this regard and timely devising and
implementing the appropriate control or preventive measures to effectively
mitigate the risk identified. The questionnaire is available on the C&ED’s
website.
Full text: click here
