LONDON (Alliance News) - WH Ireland Group PLC on Tuesday said it raised GBP1.1 million in a move to strengthen its balance sheet, as UK regulators fined the company GBP1.2 million over market abuse risks and barred it from taking on new clients in its corporate broking division for 72 days.
WH Ireland, a wealth manager and corporate broker, said it placed 1.2 million shares at 90 pence each to raise the funds. "This placing will help ensure that our balance sheet retains the strength and flexibility for the company's future known requirements," Chief Executive Richard Killingbeck said.
"As the FCA has noted we have made, and continue to make, wholesale changes to our management team and our systems and controls. We regret that we fell short of the FCA's expectations but since the beginning of my tenure in early 2013, significant changes have been made at the company and new specific oversight functions have been created," Killingbeck added.
In a statement, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority said WH Ireland failed to ensure it had the proper systems and controls in place to prevent market abuse being detected or occurring. The failings took place between January 1 and June 19, 2013.
One of those failings included having "deficient" controls to ensure inside information did not leak from the private side of WH Ireland's business to the public side. Other shortcomings included "inadequate" personal account dealing rules for employees, failures to maintain an effective written conflicts of interest policy, and the "absence" of formal risk management framework for market abuse.
"We expect all firms to have the right controls in place to mitigate risks and protect their clients and the integrity of the markets," Mark Steward, director of enforcement and market oversight at the FCA, said.
WH Ireland's shortcomings were "aggravated" by the "failure" to implement adequately recommendations made by the regulator after a report identified the failings in August 2013. A second report commissioned by WH Ireland in July 2014 showed that some of the recommendations had not been implemented "adequately" within the required time frame.
"It is one thing to be given a chance; for the chance not to be taken up is especially culpable," Steward said.
By Samuel Agini; samagini@alliancenews.com; @samuelagini
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WHIreland (WHI)