Source of article: Channel News Asia

The MAS has consistently taken the position that any enforcement action or penalty (be it civil or criminal) must be commensurate with the breach in question, proportionate to the extent of the breach and the negative impact that the errant conduct had on the integrity of the market at the material time.

The investigations on the Noble Group by the MAS reveal that there was erroneous accounting treatment of the transactions in question. That caused the published audited financial accounts to be misleading at the relevant time. It did not appear that there was any dishonesty, although two directors have received stern warnings for the company’s failure to comply with the proper Singapore accounting standards.

The MAS does not bludgeon market offenders applying sanctions and penalties like a blunt instrument akin to using a sledgehammer. Civil penalties have been administered by the market regulator on a number of occasions since 2004 where a market misconduct did not warrant criminal sanctions after the regulator’s investigations. The civil penalty regime serves to complement criminal sanctions to provide a nuanced approach to combat market misconduct.

I was interviewed by Singapore CNA on the SGD 12.6 Million civil penalty imposed on the Noble Group, announced by the MAS on 24th August 2022.

My LinkedIn post here. You may watch the video down below.