On January 2, 2020, little-known Latvian-born day trader Philip Tauberman sent the first of more than 2000 suspicious trade orders that would eventually land his stockbroker, Openmarkets, in hot water with the corporate regulator.

Tauberman, who first appeared on the radar of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission three years earlier for $10 million of questionable trades in ASX staples Blackmores and BHP, had a new method.