• 
• 

Published on February 8, 2008

The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) yesterday urgently summoned eight brokerage houses through which irregular transactions of stocks suspected of manipulation have been made.

The SET was seeking measures to protect retail investors following the failure of net-settlement and margin-loan prohibition measures.

The discussion, however, turned out to be fruitless.

The SET's action came after irregular movements of share prices and trading volume of Bliss-Tel, Bliss-Tel warrants, International Engineering, Traffic Corner Holdings, Live Incorporation and Natural Park made by big-time investors continued, though the SET has banned brokerage houses from intra-day and margin-loan trading in these stocks several times.

A source in brokers' circles said the eight brokers were Seamico Securities, Globlex Securities, UOB Kay Hian Securities (Thailand), Far East Securities, Adkinson Securities, Bualuang Securities, Thanachart Securities and KTB Securities.

There was extensive discussion in the meeting, but it was confidential, and brokers risk lawsuits if measures raised in the meeting are implemented, the source said.

"Posting the SP suspension sign on these suspicious stocks is initiated by executives of the brokers. Increasing collateral margins for those who trade these stocks was also discussed in the meeting, but they fear that customers would be confused," the source said.

"It is the first time ever that the SET has summoned brokers to investigate stock-manipulation measures. In the meeting, some executives asked the SET why only eight brokers had been summoned, and the SET explained that transactions of these stocks are executed at these brokerages."

The SET has prohibited brokers from net-settlement and margin-loan trading of Bliss-Tel warrants from December 12, 2007, to February 5, 2008. The warrants peaked at Bt8 during intra-day trade on January 2, before Bliss-Tel's stock par split was announced on February 5. It closed at 48 satang yesterday.

Bliss-Tel stock has been blocked from such trading between December 26, 2007, and February 7, 2008. Its share price reached the highest level at Bt17.20 on December 4, 2007, while it ended the market at Bt1.40 yesterday.

International Engineering, Traffic Corner Holdings and Live Incorporation are prohibited from intra-day and margin-loan trading.

Natural Park's stock has yet to be banned from intra-day and margin-loan trading but its share price peaked at 43 satang on February 6, 2007, shortly after a rights offering was announced. It closed at 28 satang yesterday.

Siriporn Chanjindamanee

 The Nation