October 14, 2015

As part of its enforcement initiative focused on violations of Rule 105 of Regulation M, the SEC settled enforcement actions against six firms: Auriga Global Investors, Sociedad de Valores, S.A., Harvest Capital Strategies LLC, J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc., Omega Advisors, Inc., Sabby Management LLC, and War Chest Capital Partners LLC.  Rule 105 is intended to preserve the independent pricing mechanisms of the securities markets and prevent stock price manipulation by prohibiting firms from participating in public stock offerings after selling short those same stocks.  Through its Rule 105 Initiative, first announced in 2013, the SEC has taken action on every Rule 105 violation over a de minimis amount that has come to its attention – promoting a message of zero tolerance for these offenses.  As a result of this Initiative, the SEC has seen a dramatic decrease in Rule 105 violations.  The firms identified in this round of enforcement have agreed to pay over $2.5 million to settle the SEC’s charges.  SEC

Tagged in: Market Manipulation and Trading Violations, Securities Fraud,