Unit 3 - Association and Legislation Flashcards
Give 2 examples of criminal offence?
Give an example of civil offence
Criminal offence -insider dealing (against individuals NOT companies), misleading statements or impressions. Punishment is 7 years +/ or unlimited fine
Civil offence - market abuse - punishment is unlimited fine (if insufficient proof for criminal offence)
What is insider dealing?
As stated in Criminal Justice Act 1993 (S52)
- Dealing/ encouraging others to deal/ disclosure of inside info
Inside info = relates to particular securities, precise info, non public and price sensitive
What instruments are covered in insider dealing?
- Shares, ADRs, warrants
- Tradable debt - bonds, gilts, commercial paper, debentures
- Options, futures and CFDs ( on above eg interest rate swaps, spread bets)
When info is used for these items on a regulated market/ via professional intermediary
What instruments are excluded from insider dealing?
- Assets with no secondary market e.g. bank account, unit trusts (ICVC, OIC), life policies
- Commodities and commodity derivatives
- spot and forward Fx
What are 4 general defences that anyone can use against insider dealing?
- didn’t expect the info would lead to profit/ avoid loss
- believed on reasonable grounds that the info was already public
- would have acted the same way irrespective of the info
- didn’t expect the recipient to deal (only works for disclosure of material info
What are the 3 specific defences market participants can use against insider dealing?
- price stabilisation rules i.e. IB buying shares in companies they’re buying or artificially supporting share price
- market info i.e. dealing on your own info as a company that you’re buying a smaller company
- market makers e.g. liquidity providers i.e. they are obliged to trade at prices they see
What are price stabilisation rules?
Allows managers to support price of new issues by buying it on the secondary market (i.e. market between other investors) for a limited time after their issue
Who enforces insider dealing rules?
Penalty?
- LSE monitor transactions (publish it through primary info providers who share it publicly)
- FCA prosecute (max penalty is 7years or unlimited fine)
What are 3 misleading statements and impressions that are criminal offences?
- S89 - misleading statements
- S90 - misleading impressions (both recklessly and on purpose)
- S91 - misleading statements in relation to benchmarks
Give 2 misleading statements and impressions defences?
General - believed info wasn’t false/ misleading
Specific - price stabilisation rules / control of info rules (i.e. holding on to it to make sure it’s true)/ share buy back rules
What are market abuse offences?
- engaging or trying to insider deal
- recommend someone else to insider deal
- illegally disclosing insider info
- doing/trying to engage in market manipulation
What is the purpose of market abuse regulation
What is the scope of market abuse regulation?
Scope of market manipulation specifically?
Purpose - measures to prevent market abuse + ensure integrity across EU financial markets. Set maximum fines
1) Financial instruments traded/ admitted to trade/ request for admission to trade on relevant markets:
- regulated markets/ MTF/OTF
- OTC trades which affect price of above
2) Emissions allowance - e.g. carbon credits
Market manipulation - commodity derivatives, commodity spot markets
What is the FCA Market conduct handbook?
Guidance on:
- Behaviour that is market abuse and not
- insider dealing/ improper disclosure
- market manipulation: manipulating transactions/ spreading info/ manipulating devices (i.e. spread info and then act on it)/ benchmark manipulation - types of regulated sanctions
- takeaway regulated status/ unlimited financial penalties/ public statements/ applying to courts for injunctions or restitutions
What are legitimate behavior that may result in market abuse?
- share buy back programmes and stabilisation measures
- following FCA rules
- following Takeover code
- Market soundings - e.g. with IPO may need to share insider info but this requires formalised process, notifications that it’s confidential info, record keeping (insider lists)
How do you reports suspicions of market abuse?
Suspicious transactions and order reports (STORs)
- including transactions/ unexecuted orders
- without delay as soon as suspicious
How are managers transactions held accountable?
- Persons discharging managerial responsibility (PDMRs) regime states managers should disclose to company and FCA when trading own company shares
- within 3 business days
- closed periods = 1m prior to YE / half yearly results PDMRs shouldn’t deal
- breach = civil offence against person/ company
- this includes all publicly traded companies not just regulated
Where can you find info on on the money laundering control framework?
- Proceeds of crime act 2002 - sets out ML related to crime = an offence + must report suspicions
- the money laundering regulations 2017 - sets out admin for companies at risk of money laundering/ terrorist financing
- SYSC - high level guidance for authorised firms + refers to JMLSG guidance
- Joint money laundering steering group guidance - guidance on how to implement non money laundering provisions (approved by treasury)
What are the 3 stages of money laundering as detailed in proceeds of crime act?
- Placement - putting criminal money/assets into a bank
- Layering - money taken from bank and used to buy different investments/ other country = separates money from its criminal source
- Integration - now money looks legit and used for anything
Who’s most at risk in the 3 stages of money laundering?
- Placement - banks
- Layering - investment firm e.g. fund manager
- Integration - anyone