Hong Kong Securities And Futures Commission: Market Misconduct Tribunal Finds Insider Dealing In China Gas Shares

The Market Misconduct Tribunal (MMT) has found that Mr Cheng Chak Ngok, former executive director, chief financial officer and company secretary of ENN Energy Holdings Limited (ENN Energy), had engaged in insider dealing in the shares of China Gas Holdings Limited (China Gas) in 2011 following a retrial (Notes 1 to 3).

In March 2017, the MMT found that Cheng had not engaged in insider dealing in the shares of China Gas.  The SFC appealed against the MMT’s decision.

In September 2018, the Court of Appeal allowed the SFC’s appeal and ordered the matter to be remitted to a differently constituted tribunal to determine solely the question of whether Cheng had dealt in the shares of China Gas.

On 30 November 2020, the MMT concluded after the retrial that it is more probable than not that Cheng had dealt in the shares of China Gas after considering that:

• Cheng was not a credible witness and no weight was attached to his evidence;
• Cheng had made arrangements to open a nominee account at Bank of China Hong Kong and to gain access to the bank statements;
• there was a clear correlation between the trading of China Gas shares and the acquisition of inside information by Cheng; and
• the sources of the orders placed via the internet (through the IP address at ENN Energy’s office) and smartphones correlated with Cheng’s whereabouts.

The MMT, which concluded that neither the nominee nor some unidentified individual would have been in a position to place the orders, will determine the sanctions against Cheng at a later date.

Notes:

1. The retrial was heard before the MMT Chairman, Mr Kenneth Kwok SC, and two lay members, Ms Lai Pik Chi Peggy and Ms Lai Tin Yin Fion.
2. Please see the SFC’s press releases dated 25 Jul 2016, 24 Mar 2017, 11 Sep 2018 and 26 Apr 2019.
3. The MMT’s report is available on its website (www.mmt.gov.hk).