Sebi slaps Rs 40 lakh fine on various individuals, entities for fraudulent trading activities

Capital markets regulator Sebi imposed a total penalty of Rs 40 lakh on five entities and three individuals for indulging in fraudulent trading activities in the scrip of Esteem Bio Organic Food Processing Ltd.

An amount of Rs 5 lakh each has been imposed on them. The entities and individuals are collectively referred to as noticees.

An investigation was conducted by the regulator in the shares of Esteem Bio Organic Food Processing during the February 7, 2013 and July 31, 2015 period.

It was found that a set of connected entities were pushing up the price of the scrip through unusual trades in such a manner so as to make a positive contribution to the Last Traded Price (LTP) and establishing New High Price (NHP).

Also, the trades of the noticees have made positive contribution to LTP on several occasions and such trades were instrumental in unusual price rise in the scrip, Sebi noted.

Further, the watchdog observed that by continuously entering sell and buy orders deliberately to match each other's orders and entering into trades in the scrip in a concerted manner, the noticees collusively established higher prices of the scrip.

They had deliberately manipulated the price of the scrip and created a misleading appearance of trading in the scrip to induce innocent investors in the securities market, thereby contravening the provisions of PFUTP (Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices) Regulations, Sebi said.

In March, the regulator had passed an order against the noticees and restrained them from accessing the securities market for four years.