ASIC bans former Regal dealer and portfolio manager for five years for market manipulation
ASIC has banned a former Regal dealer and portfolio manager for five years after finding he manipulated the market in trading Clearview shares.
The corporate regulator has banned former Regal Funds Management portfolio manager Dylan Rands for five years after finding that he had engaged in market manipulation.
The ban comes nearly two years after the Australian Securities & Investments Commission raided Regal’s offices following a police tip-off.
ASIC on Wednesday banned Mr Rands from providing financial services for five years after finding he engaged in market manipulation of ClearView Wealth shares. Regal manages more than $2bn in funds for wealthy investors.
The regulator found Mr Rands had engaged trading in the company over several months in an attempt to boost his returns from the sale of shares in ClearView, which offers life insurance and wealth management.
As part of his role, Mr Rands operated managed investment schemes at Regal, in which shares in ClearView were held.
This is despite ASIC finding he was not adequately trained, nor competent to provide financial services.
ASIC found Mr Rands had engaged in manipulative trading of the shares of ClearView between December 2018 and June 2019 in an attempt to buoy the price of the listed company.
Between December 2018 and June 2019, ClearView shares fell more than 11 per cent.
The corporate regulator found Mr Rands entered into 112 uncommercial transactions over the seven-month period in an attempt to create an artificial price for shares in ClearView.
ASIC also found Mr Rands had created “a false or misleading appearance” in the activity of trades in ClearView between March 27, 2018 and May 31, 2019.
The Australian has previously reported that ASIC opened a file into ClearView in March 2018.
Between March 2018 and May 2019, ClearView shares fell 44 per cent.
ASIC said Mr Rands had attempted to trade in such a way to restore the value of shares in ClearView following a period in which they had slumped.
“Such trading displayed an absence of commerciality, in circumstances where Mr Rands’ objective was to exit the ClearView Wealth position he managed at Regal, which he ultimately sold in June 2019,” ASIC said.
“Market manipulation is an enduring priority for ASIC. Market manipulation undermines the integrity of, and diminishes consumer confidence in, Australia’s financial markets.”
Mr Rands has 28 days to appeal against his ban to the administrative appeals tribunal.
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