Securities dealer and investment adviser Value Partners and dealing director Cheah Cheng Hye were reprimanded by the Securities and Futures Commission for 'window-dressing' activities.
An SFC investigation found Value Partners in 1998 placed a number of buy orders on five stocks near the market close on December 28, 29 and 31.
As a result the stocks closed higher.
This is 'window dressing', when dealers try to push the share price up at the end of the year, and boost the value of portfolios they manage.
The brokerage house's dealing director Mr Cheah was responsible for these investment decisions, the SFC said.
While Mr Cheah was not trying to manipulate the price of the stocks, he should have known this manner of trading would affect the stocks' closing prices, the SFC said.
