Body formed to resolve claims of Dawn Securities clients
The committee will submit its report to the commission within the next 20 working days
The stock market regulator, on Monday, formed a four-member committee to verify alleged mismatches in cash deposits of Dawn Securities Limited's clients.
Following the 2010 market collapse, the authorities suspended activities of the brokerage house following complaints of financial irregularities.
Meanwhile, the company has disposed of most of the claims.
As it has failed to resolve some claims by the 31 December deadline, the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) has extended the time to 15 February this year.
The probe committee – consisting of the representatives of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, Central Depository Bangladesh and the BSEC – will review the company's entire debt to its customers.
The committee will submit its report to the commission within the next 20 working days.
The BSEC has decided to set up another committee with three of its executive directors.
Headed by Executive Director Md Anowarul Islam, Md Saifur Rahman will be a member and Md Mahbubul Alam a member secretary of the committee.
The second committee will have 15 working days to figure out if there are any regulatory violations, and to recommend a plan of recovery from this situation.
Sources in the regulator said that the commission has made this decision for the disposal of clients' claims to the company.
On 19 July 2010, the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) suspended the activity of Dawn Securities, which was accused of mismatching Tk9 crore belonging to its 350 clients, said sources.
Then the company moved to court and secured a stay on the DSE's decision. After that, the brokerage firm resumed trading.
However, on 8 August the same year, the order was stayed by another court and since then, the operations of the company were ceased.
This correspondent tried to contact Nagina Hasin, chairperson of the brokerage firm, for her comment, but she could not reach her on phone.
Previously, the Dhaka Stock Exchange sold licences of five defaulting brokerage firms to other companies and dissolved the investors' claims with the money earned from the sale of the licences.
Trendset Securities and Crest Securities were among the five defaulting companies.
Trendset embezzled Tk25 crore which investors deposited in the brokerage house for investment in the capital market during fiscal year (FY) 2007-2009.
The deception of the brokerage firm with investors came to the fore in FY2011-12.
Last year Crest Securities Ltd, also a DSE member, closed its operations and shut down its office without making any prior announcement.
Three dozen of its clients complained to the DSE that the defaulting brokerage firm owes them over Tk16 crore.
Market insiders said brokerage firms take advantage in the absence of routine inspections by the authorities concerned.
They called for enhancing the monitoring of brokerage houses by stock exchanges as well as the regulator.