Hong Kong authorities arrested eight individuals over alleged market manipulation via a pump-and-dump scheme.
In a joint operation between the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), Hong Kong’s anti-graft agency, eight individuals were arrested over an alleged pump-and-dump scheme, according to a statement.
Through a complex cross-shareholding network, the group is suspected to have made illicit gains of HK$191 million ($24 million) through six Hong Kong-listed stocks.
The group includes a suspected ring leader, the chairperson of a Hong Kong-listed company and three executives from two brokerages who allegedly received bribes to help with share placements that facilitated the scam.
Social Media Fraud
According to the statement, the fraudsters had used social media to lure unsuspecting investors to buy shares at artificially inflated prices while the alleged syndicated members were offloading their shares for a profit.
«Combating social media ramp-and-dump schemes has been and remains one of the top enforcement priorities of the SFC,» said SFC executive director of enforcement Christopher Wilson.
