Is insider trading legal in Hong Kong?
All forms of market misconduct (including insider dealing) are liable to prosecution as a criminal offence under Part XIV of the SFO. SFC's disciplinary process should be characterised as a criminal one and so the higher criminal burden of proof should be applied instead.
Insider dealing in Hong Kong is a criminal offence and also constitutes a civil offence as a form of market misconduct.
In its Article 73, the Chinese Securities Law prohibits anyone who possess any private information to use it to trade securities. Article 74 lists all the entities that can be associated with insider trading.
“Market misconduct” is regulated under Parts XIII and XIV comprises 6 offences: insider dealing • false trading • price rigging • disclosure of information about prohibited transactions • disclosure of false or misleading information inducing transactions • stock market manipulation.
Insider trading isn't illegal as long as the person reports the trade to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the information is already in the public domain.
Hong Kong follows a free trade policy and hence maintains basically no barriers on trade. There is no customs tariff on goods imported into or exported from Hong Kong. Import and export licensing are kept to a minimum.
Investors who are keen on participating directly and widely on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange can open a brokerage account with a brokerage firm in their own country that offers a platform for international trading.
In the past, insider trading was not considered to be a crime in Japan. Now that the practice has been criminalized by Japanese law, it is expected that most Japanese, who place a high value on obeying the law, will avoid criminal insider trading practices.
Former Congressman Sentenced To 22 Months In Prison For Insider Trading. Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that STEPHEN BUYER, a former Indiana Congressman, was sentenced today to 22 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman.
There is no citizenship requirement for owning stocks of American companies. While U.S. investment securities are regulated by U.S. law, there are no specific provisions that forbid individuals who are not citizens of the U.S. from participating in the U.S. stock market.
Is sexting illegal in Hong Kong?
It may be the age of sexting and inappropriate Snapchats but you and your significant other should know that sending an 'indecent' or 'obscene' message over 'wireless telephony' (or telegraph, in fact) is illegal. It's all fun and games until someone gets slapped with a thoroughly unsexy $1,000 fine.
Why is TikTok banned in Hong Kong? “In light of recent events, we've decided to stop operations of the TikTok app in Hong Kong,” a statement from the company read on July 6, 2020 read, just days after the Beijing-imposed national security law was enacted in the city.
The economy of Hong Kong is a highly developed free-market economy. It is characterised by low taxation, almost free port trade and a well-established international financial market.
According to the SEC in the US, a conviction for insider trading may lead to a maximum fine of $5 million and up to 20 years of imprisonment.
Understanding White-Collar Crime
High-profile individuals convicted of white-collar crimes include Ivan Boesky, Bernard Ebbers, Michael Milken, and Bernie Madoff. Their crimes have included insider trading, accounting scandals, securities fraud, and Ponzi schemes.
Like other white-collar crimes, insider trading (securities fraud) is prosecuted as a felony when the federal government decides to pursue such allegations. In fact, you face up to 25 years in federal prison along with a fine of up to $5 million per offense if you are convicted of securities fraud.
Relations between Hong Kong and our global trading partners are based on Hong Kong's unique status under “one country, two systems” conferred upon by the Basic Law. Hong Kong has been a staunch supporter of free trade. As a separate member of the WTO, our economic and trade status is on par with other members.
Public Behaviour
Avoid loud and obtrusive public behavior. Avoid holding hands and public displays of affection. Be mindful that smoking is forbidden in some outdoor areas, like beaches and parks. Do not drink too much in public.
The position in Hong Kong, as in many common law jurisdictions, is that covenants in restraint of trade are unenforceable unless they can be shown to be reasonable between the parties and in the public interest.
Hong Kong stocks dive as yuan plumbs four-month low, corporate earnings disappoint. Hong Kong stocks dropped by the most in two weeks, with the benchmark ending the week in the red, after disappointing earnings from bellwether companies and the breach of a key support level by the yuan, battered investor sentiment.
Can you invest in Hong Kong?
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange offers securities listed in Hong Kong and mainland China. If you're a foreign investor who wants to take advantage of Hong Kong's stock market, contact your brokerage firm to see if you can open an account that allows you to invest in international markets.
- Open an Integrated Account at our designated branches. ...
- Activate a Securities Account and USD Savings Account under your Integrated Account. ...
- Download Hang Seng Invest Express mobile app (“Invest Express”). ...
- Complete the Substitute Form W-8BEN.
Insider trading is when non-published information from a company is used to make a trading decision by someone with an invested interest in that company. It is illegal to engage in insider trading, but it is legal to trade your company shares as long as you follow the guidelines set by the SEC.
Enforcement of insider trading laws varies widely from country to country, but the vast majority of jurisdictions now outlaw the practice, at least in principle.
Also, It should be noted that both investigation and prosecution of Insider Trading is one of the duties of the Saudi Bureau for Investigation and Prosecution; and so for being a criminal activity punishable by up to a prison.
References
- https://www.cnbc.com/id/25950310
- https://prisonprofessors.com/insider-trading-faq-part-1/
- https://www.charltonslaw.com/legal/compliance/Market-misconduct-under-the-SFO-in-Hong-Kong.pdf
- https://therealdeal.com/la/2023/06/06/after-pandemic-decline-agents-see-chinese-buyers-returning-to-la/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insider_trading
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/10-unbelievable-cases-insider-trading-172050946.html
- https://www.deacons.com/2023/08/16/hong-kong-regulator-broadens-scope-of-insider-dealing/
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/257099/value-of-foreign-direct-investment-in-china-by-country/
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/13/treating-china-as-un-investable-would-be-the-wrong-call-strategist.html
- https://impactgrouphr.com/individualpost/30-social-etiquette-tips-for-hong-kong/
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/12/chinas-valuations-are-way-too-low-strategist-says-heres-why.html
- https://vanelswyklaw.com/understanding-insider-trading-why-its-illegal-and-how-its-detected/
- https://fdi.mofcom.gov.cn/en/come-newzonghe.html?parentId=125&name=The%20Legal%20System%20for%20Foreign%20Investment&comeID=3
- https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/japan-trade-barriers
- https://www.jpx.co.jp/english/regulation/preventing/insider/index.html
- https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/japan-market-overview
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/o/openingprice.asp
- https://www.china-briefing.com/doing-business-guide/china/why-china
- https://www.barrons.com/articles/china-citizens-selling-stock-market-fccd242b
- https://thefederaldefenders.com/legal-blog/news/insider-trading-when-is-it-considered-a-felony
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/07/invest_china.asp
- https://www.axios.com/2023/08/04/chinese-homebuyers-us-real-estate-florida-california-texas
- https://www.timeout.com/hong-kong/blog/hong-kongs-strangest-laws-052016
- https://www.jonesday.com/en/insights/2020/02/chinas-new-foreign-investment-law
- https://www.5paisa.com/blog/what-is-insider-trading
- https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3256301/hong-kong-stocks-slump-after-weak-earnings-ping-and-li-ka-shings-listed-firms
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/092616/how-insider-trading-prevented-corporations.asp
- https://brokerchooser.com/hong-kong
- https://www.coreknowledge.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/CKHG-G5-U8-about-changes-to-japan.pdf
- https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/wealth-management/what-is-insider-trading/
- https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/green-collar-crime-definition-examples-punishment.html
- https://time.com/6835935/china-debt-housing-bubble/
- https://globalinvestigationsreview.com/guide/the-guide-international-enforcement-of-the-securities-laws/third-edition/article/china-new-zero-tolerance-crackdown-securities-market-crimes-and-irregularities
- https://www.justia.com/criminal/offenses/white-collar-crimes/insider-trading/
- https://www.tilemlawfirm.com/insider-trading.html
- https://business.fiu.edu/news/2023/insider-trading-the-legal-kind.html
- https://www.hennessyfunds.com/investment-guides/investing-in-japan
- https://www.wsj.com/world/china/whats-wrong-with-chinas-economy-in-eight-charts-efc2ea5f
- https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/japan-prohibited-restricted-imports
- https://smartasset.com/investing/tokyo-stock-exchange
- https://www.fidelity.com/stock-trading/faqs-international
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/03/100803.asp
- https://www.sflaw.com/blog-post/insider-trading-2022-in-review/
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/active-trading/052715/how-trade-hong-kong-stock-exchange.asp
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/05/foreignownershipusstocks.asp
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/sending-money-out-china-guide-adam-fayed-2rfbf
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/021815/how-sec-tracks-insider-trading.asp
- https://collins.house.gov/media/press-releases/collins-china-buying-us-farmland
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/28/biden-executive-order-aims-to-protect-americans-sensitive-data-from-china-russia.html
- https://research.hktdc.com/en/article/MzM0NDk2NTI4
- https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Delivery.cfm/SSRN_ID4565558_code2106905.pdf?abstractid=3764192&mirid=1
- https://www.reuters.com/markets/asia/chinese-investors-rush-abroad-hitting-outbound-investment-limit-2024-03-06/
- https://hongkongfp.com/2024/03/15/explainer-why-is-tiktok-blocked-in-hong-kong/
- https://www.china-briefing.com/news/chinas-outbound-investment-odi-recent-developments-opportunities-and-challenges/
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-12/chinese-stocks-make-return-to-global-portfolios-on-bottom-bets
- https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/econographics/chinas-stock-market-collapse-is-the-end-of-the-road-for-many-foreign-investors/
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/what-exactly-is-insider-trading/
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/insidertrading.asp
- https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/federal-insider-trading-crimes-and-fraud.html
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/manipulation.asp
- https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/insider-trading
- https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2023/09/14/sebi-prohibition-of-insider-trading-regulations-2015-major-obstacles-implementation/
- https://www.secatty.com/legal-blog/insider-trading/
- https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/regulation-insider-trading-japan
- https://www.hkex.com.hk/Global/Exchange/FAQ/Getting-Started/Getting-Started-for-individual-investors?sc_lang=en
- https://nyujlpp.org/quorum/wiesenfeld-salman-evolution-of-insider-trading/
- https://www.legalline.ca/legal-answers/what-is-insider-trading/
- https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/why-some-chinese-invest-in-the-stock-market-and-others-dont/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014481882100048X
- https://harbert.auburn.edu/binaries/documents/center-for-ethical-organizational-cultures/cases/martha-stewart.pdf
- https://www.cedb.gov.hk/en/trade-and-investment/hong-kong-in-global-trade.html
- https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3256400/does-us175-trillion-bounce-chinese-stocks-mean-markets-long-march-recovery-has-begun
- https://hauzen.hk/insider-dealing
- https://cma.org.sa/en/Awareness/Publications/booklets/English.pdf
- https://www.sec.gov/news/speech/speecharchive/1998/spch221.htm
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/hongkongstockexchange.asp
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/062315/what-are-differences-between-hshares-and-ashares-chinese-and-hong-kong-stock-exchanges.asp
- https://docs.wto.org/dol2fe/Pages/SS/directdoc.aspx?filename=q:/WT/TPR/S276-03.pdf&Open=True
- https://www.hangseng.com/en-hk/personal/investment/securities-services/us-stocks/
- https://www.cbr.ru/eng/inside/
- https://onlinemba.wsu.edu/blog/insider-trading-examples
- https://www.scartelli.com/the-many-colors-of-collared-crime/
- https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/former-congressman-sentenced-22-months-prison-insider-trading
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Hong_Kong
- https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/white-collar_crime
- https://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/australia/study0504/chapter4-2.pdf
- https://trac.syr.edu/tracreports/bulletins/white_collar_crime/monthlydec23/fil/
- https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-94-009-4442-8_8.pdf
- https://www.cpjobs.com/hk/article/the-importance-set-well-drafted-post-termination-restrictive-covenants
- https://www.wklaw.com/insider-trading-charges/
- https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/05/foreignstocks.asp
- https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/08/10/why-prosecuting-insider-trading-is-so-problematic.html
- https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1164964/000101968715004168/globalfuture_8k-ex9904.htm
- https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/white-collar-crime.asp
- https://maint.loc.gov/law/help/real-property-law/china-real-property-law.pdf
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/stocks/09/insider-trading.asp
- https://www.sec.gov/investment/insider-trading-arrangements-and-related-disclosures
