Investment analyst jailed for insider trading

Insider trading case in technology stock Big Un lands former investment analyst in jail.

Insider trading case in technology stock Big Un lands former investment analyst in jail.

Former investment analyst Michael Ming Jinn Ho, 33, has been sentenced in the Sydney Downing Centre District Court to three years imprisonment following a trial over insider trading in technology stock Big Un.

Mr Ho, formerly with funds manager Maple Brown Abbott, pleaded guilty to five counts of insider trading and one count of communicating inside information in respect of Big Un shares and options between July 2016 and February 2018.

It was discovered that Mr Ho invested approximately $1.6m in Big Un securities over this two-year period while in possession of inside information communicated to him by Big Un’s chief executive Richard Evertz.

Mr Ho had admitted to trading while in possession of inside information relating to Big Un and to one occasion of communicating inside information to an associate. The inside information was communicated to Mr Ho during a series of meetings and telephone conversations between Mr Ho and Mr Evertz.

Judge Michael King ordered that Mr Ho serve his sentence via an intensive correction order. In a statement issued on Friday, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission said Mr Ho co-operated with ASIC throughout the course of its investigation by participating in voluntary interviews and providing documents. Mr Ho also made a formal statement admitting to the offences and the facts concerning them.

Judge King quantified the discount applied to Mr Ho’s sentence of 50 per cent in recognition of his co-operation and early guilty plea.

“ASIC will take strong action against market misconduct in order to ensure Australia’s financial markets remain robust, fair and efficient,” said ASIC deputy chair Daniel Crennan.

Mr Crennan also reinforced the importance of co-operating with ASIC.

“Significant discounts may apply where individuals co-operate with ASIC,” Mr Crennan said. “ASIC will assess the level of co-operation it receives, and where appropriate, provide information about the nature, extent and timeliness of that co-operation to the court.”

Big Un was one of the best performing stocks of 2017, but suffered a dramatic fall from grace as it was placed in trading halt and suspended from quotation in February 2018. It was removed from the official ASX list in August 2018. It later entered liquidation.

When Big Un listed, then-CEO Mr Evertz, who founded the company as a teenager, was the youngest boss of any ASX-listed company. Mr Evertz reportedly came up with the idea with father Richard, a convicted police impersonator, who stepped down from the company in May 2018.

ASIC’s investigation concerning Big Un and its officers and executives continues.