Securities regulators in Nova Scotia have banned a man for 20 years after it found that he violated securities laws in his efforts to raise money for a Hong Kong-based solar company.
The Nova Scotia Securities Commission (NSSC) settled with Steven Brown, a resident of Halifax, who admitted that he violated securities laws by promoting the shares of Sunseeker Energy Ltd. without being registered.
According to the NSSC, Brown violated securities laws by publicly encouraging people to purchase the shares of the company, and by making representations about the future value of the shares once they were listed on an exchange. It says that he accepted responsibility for his conduct, co-operated with its investigation, and settled with the commission.
Under the settlement agreement, Brown was reprimanded, ordered to pay an administrative penalty of $7,500 and costs of $1,000. He was also hit with a 20-year ban from becoming registered, acting as a director or officer, and from relying on exemptions from securities laws.
“The promotion and sale of securities requires registration, so potential investors are encouraged to check with the commission to ensure that anyone promoting or selling securities is registered,” said Heidi Schedler, enforcement counsel with the NSSC. “Representations about the future value of shares are prohibited, and it is also prohibited for any person or company to represent that securities will be listed in the future on any exchange without prior approval of the commission.”