The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) is planning to raise the market capitalization requirement for securities eligible for short selling and triple the fines for violators of short selling rules. In a statement issued on Thursday, the SET said it would raise the bar on short selling and program trading supervision based on its study of measures used by leading international bourses, reported MSN.
Meanwhile, Yicai Global reported that a number of Chinese brokerages have temporarily halted their securities lending business, which is when brokers lend stocks that they own or stocks in their clients’ investment accounts to short sellers for a fee, citing National Business Daily.
A leading broker based in East China froze its securities lending pool today, only allowing the return of securities lent and banning any further borrowing, the report said. The firm has not said when the pool will re-open.
But in North China, brokers have not said they will stop securities lending, according to an investment firm. The business is a good earner for brokers as investors borrow securities for a period to sell and are required to return the same type and amount of securities by a certain deadline and pay interest.