Bapepam sanctions 10 securities firms

JAKARTA (JP): The Capital Market Supervisory Agency (Bapepam) said on Friday it had sanctioned ten investment managers for violating capital market regulations.

Bapepam's law and legal aid bureau head Robinson Simbolon said in a press statement that nine of the investment firms had their operations suspended, while one had their license revoked by the capital market watchdog.

He said the investment managers were found to be violating the government regulation on capital market operation No. 45/1995, which obliges an investment firm to have at least one director and one employee, both of whom must possess a license to operate as an investment manager representative.

Of the nine firms suspended, eight -- PT Bintang Nusantara Securities, PT Finan Corpindo Nusa, PT Merrill Lynch Indonesia, PT OCBC Sikap Securities, PT PDFCI Securities, PT Pranata Securities, PT Primarindo Securities and PT UOBB Securities -- were ordered to cease operations for six months.

The ninth company, PT Orientama Inti Asset Management, was ordered to halt operations for three months.

Should the firms fail to meet the requirements of the regulation within the suspension period, Bapepam will consider revoking their licenses, Robinson was quoted by Detik.Com as saying.

Bapepam revoked the license of PT Amstell Securities for violating the above regulation and for being found to have "unknown whereabouts". The existing regulation obliges a securities firm to inform Bapepam of its address.

Robinson also said PT Morgan Grenfell Astra Investment had returned its business license to the agency following the firm's liquidation. (iwa)