Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong: Withdrawal of restriction notice served to Emperor Securities International (Hong Kong) Limited

On November 19, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong withdrew the restriction notice issued to Guoco Securities International (Hong Kong) Limited (Guoco). The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong had earlier issued the restriction notice to prohibit the disposal or dealing of the profits or assets in Guoco from the account of Guo Lecai (male), which were suspected to have been obtained through insider trading of I.T Limited (I.T) shares. It is reported that the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong has obtained a court order to prevent dissipation of assets related to Guo and his associates, namely Tsang Ching Yi (female), in connection with the investigation of insider trading of I.T shares, hence the withdrawal of the restriction notice issued to Guoco in August 2022. On May 2, 2023, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong obtained a temporary injunction against Guo and Tsang to prohibit them from disposing or dealing with their assets in Hong Kong, including all money and securities in their securities accounts in Hong Kong, with a limit of HKD 8,246,496. As the assets in Guo's account at Guoco are subject to the temporary injunction, the restriction notice is no longer necessary. The Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong believes that the withdrawal of the restriction notice imposed on Guoco is the appropriate course of action. Furthermore, Guoco is not a subject of the investigation by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, and the restriction notice does not affect the operations of Guoco or its other clients.