The Federal Court today unanimously dismissed Dato’ Raymond Yap Wee Hin’s (Yap) application for leave to appeal to the Federal Court.
In its decision, the apex court comprising Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun binti Tuan Mat and Federal Court Judges, Datuk Vazeer Alam bin Mydin Meera and Dato' Lee Swee Seng unanimously affirmed the decisions of the Court of Appeal and the High Court.
The leave application was filed by Yap following the unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal, on 27 November 2024, which had affirmed the High Court’s finding that he was liable for insider trading of Patimas Computers Berhad (Patimas) shares in 2012.
In a civil action filed in 2020, the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) claimed that Yap had breached section 188(2)(a) and (b) of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 (CMSA) when he disposed a total of 43.8 million Patimas shares held by Law Siew Ngoh, former Managing Director of Patimas, between June and July 2012.
At the time, Yap was in possession of material, non-public information relating to audit queries and issues regarding suspicious transactions between Patimas and its top debtors. The matter had been raised and discussed by Patimas’ external auditor during a meeting with the company’s management.
On 31 July 2012, Patimas’ Board of Directors announced to Bursa Malaysia that the company would not be able to issue the company’s Annual Audited Financial Statements for the financial period from 1 January 2011 to 31 March 2012 due to unresolved significant audit findings/queries.
At the High Court, following a full trial, Yap was ordered to pay to the SC a disgorgement of RM3.28 million, which is equal to three times the losses avoided by Yap as a result of the breach, and a civil penalty of RM1 million. Yap was also prohibited from being appointed as director in any public-listed company for a period of five years, with effect from the date of the High Court judgment on 7 April 2022.
The Federal Court, in dismissing Yap’s application for leave to appeal, directed him to pay costs of RM30,000 to the SC.
