The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has suspended Ms Ching Yim Har for three years from 14 August 2013 to 13 August 2016 (Note 1).
The disciplinary action follows an SFC investigation which found that between January 2006 and March 2008, Ching, who was an account executive at the material time:
- conducted transactions in a client’s account on a discretionary basis without written authorization; and
- accepted performance fees from the client for managing a portfolio of securities for the client without the knowledge and consent of her employer.
Despite the absence of proper authorization, there was evidence that the discretionary account operated with the consent of the client. While this favours Ching, the absence of written authorization placed her employer in a prejudicial position in case of any dispute.
The SFC considers Ching’s misconduct called into question her fitness and properness to be a licensed person. In determining the penalty, the SFC took into account that:
- Ching’s conduct took place over a prolonged period of time;
- acting in the best interests of a client is fundamental to the fitness and properness of a licensed representative;
- a clear message needs to be sent to the market that misconduct similar to Ching’s are not tolerated; and
- Ching has no disciplinary record.
Notes:
- Ching is licensed under the Securities and Futures Ordinance to carry on Type 1 (dealing in securities), Type 2 (dealing in futures contracts) and Type 4 (advising on securities) regulated activities. She was accredited to Phillip Securities (Hong Kong) Limited and Phillip Commodities (HK) Limited between February 2004 and April 2012. She is currently not accredited to any licensed corporation.
- A copy of the Statement of Disciplinary Action in relation to the matter is available on the SFC website.