BSEC fines Sonali Life share manipulators Tk2.73cr
The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has imposed fines totalling Tk2.73 crore on five individuals for manipulating shares of Sonali Life Insurance Company Limited.
The regulator made the decision in a meeting on 4 March based on an investigation report regarding the company's share trading. The regulator will issue letters to the related parties soon.
The five individuals penalised are Nurjahan Begum fined Tk1 lakh, Md Sazidul Hasan Tk75 lakh, Md Sayadur Rahman Tk1 lakh, Ferdoushi Begum Tk1.95 crore, and Md Lutfur Rahman Tk1 lakh.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Besides, the commission has also decided to issue a warning letter against Eastern Bank for violation of the securities laws in Sonali Life's share trading.
The investigation covered the period from 18 April to 11 June 2023, during which the manipulators violated various securities laws. On 18 April 2023, Sonali Life's share price was Tk64, which surged by an unusual 65% to Tk105.50 on 11 June 2023.
However, as of Thursday, the company's share price closed at Tk51.4 on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE).
In January 2025, the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) downgraded Sonali Life Insurance to the Z category due to its failure to hold annual general meetings (AGMs).
The directive mandates that any issuer failing to conduct its AGM within the stipulated time frame must be moved to the Z category, commonly referred to as the junk stock category.
According to DSE listing regulations, companies are required to hold their AGMs within 45 working days after the record date which is set during the year-end board meeting.
However, the firm did not seek an extension from the BSEC to hold their AGMs after failing the deadline. Consequently, the DSE decided to downgrade their categories.
According to the company's Life Revenue Account, in the July to September quarter of 2023, the surplus was Tk1,09.17 crore, compared to Tk71.38 crore in the same period of the previous year.
The surplus stood at Tk2,64.96 crore from January to September 2023, up from Tk174.37 crore in the corresponding period of 2022.
As a result, the balance of the life insurance fund as of September 2023 was Tk868.51 crore, compared to Tk4,71.39 crore a year ago.
