The South Korean Financial Commission said on the 25th that it had heavily fined BNP Paribas and HSBC on the grounds that these two financial institutions had repeatedly engaged in illegal "naked short selling" transactions. The Financial Commission of Korea said it was investigating the short-selling practices of other financial institutions such as international investment banks.
According to the Korea Times, BNP Paribas and HSBC Bank of the United Kingdom violated South Korea's Capital Markets Act and must pay fines totaling 26.5 billion won, or about 1 yuan4.6 billion yuan. This is the largest fine imposed in South Korea since April 2021, when the penalty system was introduced for illegal short selling.
According to the report, from September 2021 to May 2022, BNP Paribas submitted 101 short orders worth more than 40 billion won in South Korea without borrowing**, and its "naked short selling" target included a large South Korean Internet technology company. From August to December 2021, HSBC "naked short selling" 9 South Korea**, with short orders worth 16 billion won, including the Shilla Hotel in South Korea.
After discovering the large-scale illegal short-selling operations of BNP Paribas and HSBC in the United Kingdom, the Financial Commission of Korea decided in November this year to completely ban short-selling in South Korea until the end of June next year. The so-called "naked short selling" refers to the sale of ** or bonds that investors do not hold or even have not borrowed.
*Please specify CCTV Finance.
Editor: Zhang Jingye.