The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission has banned former fund manager L Botang from re-entering the industry for life and fined him 17.43 million Hong Kong dollars.

On March 24th, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong announced that it has banned for life the former licensed representative of Rain Field Capital Limited, Lui Pak Tong, from re-entering the industry. He was also fined 17.43 million Hong Kong dollars, an amount equivalent to the profits he had gained from his misconduct. The investigation by the Securities and Futures Commission found that between September 2017 and June 2020, Lui Pak Tong, acting as an analyst for Rain Field Investments, induced an independent investment portfolio managed by a fund under Rain Field to provide a total of 22.5 million Hong Kong dollars in unsecured loans to a company controlled by himself. Although Lui Pak Tong recommended the granting of these loans to the Rain Field Investment Committee, he did not disclose the conflict of interest arising from his involvement in the company, nor did he ensure fair treatment of the fund and its investors. The investigation also revealed that Lui Pak Tong had actually jointly established Rain Field, the fund, and the company with his related parties, all three entities being controlled by him. Subsequently, he transferred most of the loan funds received by the company to himself or his affiliated persons, including his wife. In the end, the fund only received 5.07 million in interest payments from the company, while Lui Pak Tong and his related parties kept the remaining 17.43 million for themselves. The Securities and Futures Commission considered Lui Pak Tong's actions to be intentional and dishonest, casting doubts on his suitability as a licensed person and violating the Code of Conduct and the Code of Conduct for Fund Managers. The Commission emphasized that Lui Pak Tong exploited fund investors, sacrificed their interests to seek personal gain, and it was necessary to expel him from the industry to safeguard investors and uphold market integrity.