A man who operated two Richmond financial companies has been fined $500,000 and banned from various financial market activities.
Winter Huang (also known as Dong Huang) was the president and director of Pegasus Pharmaceuticals and the director of Careseng Cancer Institute Inc.
A British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) panel determined that Huang and the companies illegally distributed securities.
As well as banning Huang, the BCSC also prohibited Pegasus and Careseng from trading in or purchasing any securities or derivatives, and from engaging in promotional activities. Pegasus, which was not ordered to pay a fine, was banned for 10 years and Careseng, which has since been dissolved, for eight.
However, all fraud allegations against Huang and Pegasus – which were investigated previously by the BCSC - were dismissed.
A BCSC panel also previously found that neither Pegasus nor Huang were found to be enriched by their conduct.
Between 2010 and 2012, Pegasus distributed more than 1,400 bonds totaling approximately $45 million (U.S.) to investors in Taiwan. During that time, Careseng guaranteed repayment of the principal of 447 bonds, totaling approximately US$12.8 million.
The securities were all issued without a prospectus, a formal document that explains the details of an investment and the risks involved.
Neither the companies nor the investors qualified for an exemption from the prospectus requirement under the Securities Act. As a result, Huang, Pegasus and Careseng illegally distributed securities.
Huang must resign any position he holds as a director or officer of an issuer or registrant, and is prohibited for at least 10 years from:
• trading in or purchasing any securities or derivatives, except that he may trade and purchase securities or derivatives for his own account
• becoming or acting as a director or officer of any issuer or registrant
• becoming or acting as a registrant or promoter
• advising or otherwise acting in a management or consultative capacity in connection with activities in the securities or derivatives markets, and
• engaging in promotional activities by or on behalf of an issuer, security holder or party to a derivative, or another person that is reasonably expected to benefit from the promotional activity.
Huang will remain banned from those activities until he pays the administrative penalty.
