SEC freezes accounts in SoftBank-Fortress inquiry

The US Securities and Exchange Commission secured an emergency court order freezing the brokerage accounts of investors who engaged in “highly suspicious” trading ahead of Fortress Investment Group’s acquisition by SoftBank of Japan.

The unidentified traders reaped $3.6m by placing a series of perfectly timed orders for Fortress shares and derivatives through Maybank Securities in Singapore and RJ O’Brien in London, according to the top US markets watchdog.

The Maybank traders began buying Fortress shares just 33 minutes after the company’s board of directors received an email confirming the on-again, off-again deal would proceed, the SEC said. Shares in the US-listed private equity

source http://www.omnipopmag.com/2017/03/01/sec-freezes-accounts-in-softbank-fortress-inquiry/