​MAS Bans Two Individuals for 17 and 9 Years Respectively

​The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced that it has banned two former bank employees Lu Chor Sheng and Tan Swee Thiam Timothy from performing any regulated activity for fraud and dishonest conduct.

MAS detailed that between January 2011 and June 2013, the former treasury advisor of OCBC Lu Chor Sheng used a friend’s accounts to place unauthorised forward FX trades with off-market rates in OCBC’s system, in order to buy lower and sell higher than the prevailing market rates.

Mr Lu also instigated his friend to impersonate his customers to place unauthorised forward FX orders with OCBC, in order to close off unauthorised FX trades that Mr Lu had placed in those customers’ accounts.

Mr Tan’s friend, a customer of UOB, had entrusted her UOB bank accounts, internet banking security token and UOB ATM card to him. Between March 2015 and January 2016, Mr Tan made unauthorised internet bank transfers amounting to around $263,500 from this customer’s UOB account to his personal bank account, in order to pay for his living expenses.

Mr Lu and Mr Tan are prohibited for a period of 17 and 9 years from performing any regulated activity under the Securities and Futures Act (SFA) and from providing any financial advisory service under the Financial Advisers Act (FAA) respectively. They are also prohibited from taking part in the management, acting as directors or becoming substantial shareholders of any capital market services firm under the SFA and any financial advisory firm under the FAA.