In early March, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued prohibition orders  against four individuals, following their convictions for market misconduct offences. The four were among eight people charged for offences under the Securities and Futures Act (SFA). This was in relation to a scheme to commit false trading in the shares of Koyo International Limited, an engineering service provider listed on the Catalist board of the Singapore Exchange.

The individuals were convicted and sentenced to imprisonment terms of between three months and 20 months, 18 weeks. Under the MAS ban, they are prohibited from providing any financial advisory service, or taking part in the management, acting as a director, or becoming a substantial shareholder of any licensed financial adviser under the Financial Advisers Act. Three of them are also banned from carrying out any regulated activities and taking part in the management, acting as a director or becoming a substantial shareholder of any capital market services licensee under the SFA. The court proceedings against the other four individuals are still ongoing.

The MAS ban confirms Singapore’s focus on high standards of integrity and behaviour and also sends a clear message to the wider financial services world. It reflects the country’s status as a reputable international financial centre backed by consistent standards of financial regulation.The ban also highlights the role of the MAS in maintaining the reputation of the financial industry by regularly issuing compliance requirements and prohibition orders.  It is in line with the authority’s aim to step up its actions against financial misconduct and market abuse. This has recently involved increasing its focus on early detection of market misconduct, reducing the time it takes to complete reviews and investigations, imposing $3.3 million in composition penalties for money laundering-related control breaches and issuing 25 prohibition orders against unfit representatives.

The prohibition orders issued by MAS are an important reminder for companies in Singapore and the wider financial services world to strive to meet all regulatory requirements and to prioritise compliance. They also illustrate the close scrutiny that regulatory bodies continue to apply to businesses. Financial authorities such as the MAS play an important part in enabling countries to maintain their reputation as a good place to do business by working preventatively to address potential issues alongside responding to cases like the one outlined above.

This recent case and the authority’s response to it highlights how important it is for finance companies to not only work to the highest standards for customers but also ensure that all regulatory requirements are met at every stage.  Failing to do so can result in significant damage to businesses and to consumer trust in the financial services industry.

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