Thursday, April 21, 2011

SC charges 2 ex-Bestino officials over shares issuance which raised RM400m

KUALA LUMPUR: The Securities Commission charged two former directors of Bestino Group Bhd for not registering a prospectus when they issued'' redeemable preference shares (RPS) that raised RM400 million.

The SC said on Thursday, April 21 the duo charged were Chong Yuk Ming and''Balachandran A. Shanmugam.

It said the offence was committed between Nov 3, 2008 and June 16, 2009 at Bestino's office in Ipoh.

Under section 232(1) of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 (CMSA), a person shall not issue securities unless a prospectus in relation to that securities has been registered by the SC.

'Bestino is believed to have solicited approximately RM400 million from the issuance of redeemable preference shares to over 6000 individuals,' the SC said.

Chong Yuk Ming, 49, and Balachandran, 56, who were at that time directors of Bestino, committed the offence under section 232(1) read together with section 367(1) of the CMSA.

If convicted they will be liable to a fine not exceeding RM10 million or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or both.

They were granted bail of RM300,000 with one surety. The court also impounded Balachandran's passport. The case is fixed for mention on June 1, 2011.

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