A high court judge in Hong Kong ordered the continued freeze of assets belonging to individuals suspected of a «large scale and highly organized manipulative scheme» that at one point led GEM-listed Ching Lee share prices to plummet 90 percent in one day.

The court order extends a freeze on 125 million Hong Kong dollars ($13 million) worth of profits held by 20 individuals through 15 local and overseas entities allegedly made through market manipulation activities.

Ching Lee is listed on Hong Kong’s Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) board which is designed primarily for companies that lack profitability levels and track record required to be listed on the main board, Hong Kong Stock Exchange. 

Hong Kong regulator Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) first applied to freeze the’ assets in July this year alleging that they had «devised, executed, or were otherwise involved in a scheme to manipulate the shares», beginning even before the stock’s listing. The regulator added that the suspects artificially inflated Ching Lee’s share price and turn over between March 29, 2016 and September 6, 2016. On September 7 that year, the share price collapsed by 90 percent.

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A market manipulator may be liable to criminal prosecution in which the maximum penalty is HK$10 million and 10 years of imprisonment, which can be imposed upon conviction on indictment.

If charged, market manipulators could face up to 10 years of imprisonment and a maximum penalty of $1.3 million. The SFC is also seeking orders against the defendants to obtain their profits and restore other innocent victims' pre-manipulation positions.

«Seeking injunction and restorative orders from the court against alleged cross-border manipulators is a key element of the SFC’s enforcement strategy to prevent alleged wrongdoers from cashing-in on their misdeeds and preserve suspected ill-gotten gains for future compensation to affected parties,» said SFC executive director of enforcement, Thomas Atkinson, underlining the regulator’s zero tolerance commitment towards market misconduct.