Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd has fined former dealer’s representative Nurendran Parathan RM59,000 and issued a public reprimand over manipulative trading activities involving multiple securities counters.
The exchange operator also directed that Nurendran be removed as a registered person if he remains registered with Bursa Malaysia Securities.
Nurendran, who was attached to CGS-CIMB Securities Sdn Bhd at the time, was found to have conducted coordinated cross-trading activities over a four-month period using an Investment Account Trader account linked to him, along with trading accounts belonging to two family members.
“The trades created misleading market activity and artificially supported prices of the affected securities. The activities allegedly enabled the related accounts to dispose of shares at inflated prices while giving the impression of active market demand.
“Investigations also uncovered trading patterns commonly associated with price manipulation, including progressively increasing bid prices to match sell orders and repeatedly placing small-volume trades to absorb selling pressure,” the exchange said, while emphasising that this trading behaviour showed clear signs of pre-arranged coordination between the accounts involved and had the effect of influencing market prices.
Bursa Malaysia Securities added that the conduct breached the professional obligations expected of a registered person, particularly in relation to integrity, fair dealing and professional conduct.
It said the disciplinary action was intended to reinforce market integrity and serve as a warning against similar misconduct within the industry.
