The Ontario Securities Commission has filed securities fraud charges against Weizhen Tang, a Toronto businessman who billed himself as "the Chinese Warren Buffett" and was accused of running a Ponzi scheme.
Yesterday, the province's stock market watchdog laid a total of 12 charges against Tang and his companies, Oversea Chinese Fund Limited Partnership and Weizhen Tang & Associates.
Tang "will be defending the allegations. He will speak when his time comes during the court process," his lawyer, Calvin Barry, said yesterday.
A hearing is scheduled for June 24 in the Ontario Court of Justice.
The commission alleges that Tang collected more than $40 million from more than 100 investors, including residents of Ontario.
The charges include securities fraud, unregistered trading in securities, illegal distributions of securities and making prohibited undertakings with the intention of effecting trades in securities, which were alleged to have taken place between Jan. 1, 2006, and March 31, 2009. The province's Securities Act states that no person or company can give written or oral representations on the future value or price of a security.
Each offence carries a maximum fine of $5 million, or a jail sentence of five years less a day, or both.
In March, the OSC slapped Tang and his companies with a court order to freeze assets, as well as a cease trade order.
The OSC said in its release yesterday that it has been working with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in its investigation.
Tang is also facing similar charges by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC alleges that Tang raised capital from U.S. investors by offering and selling limited partnership interests in WinWin Capital Limited Partnership, a Texas-based company he controls.
The OSC first raised allegations in March that Tang may have been operating a Ponzi scheme worth as much as $60 million (U.S.). Tang reportedly told investors that money from new investors was being used to pay out existing investors.
He also told OSC investigators that the fund lost $15 million in 2007, but he did not disclose the loss to investors.
TORONTO (GlobeinvestorGOLD) — The energy sector appears to be on the verge of a significant rally and investors can pick an individual stock or choose a basket of stocks through ETFs.
Petrolifera to begin La Pinta testing on June 6
2009-06-05 09:12 ET - News Release
Mr. R. A. Gusella reports
TESTING OF PETROLIFERA'S LA PINTA WELL IN COLOMBIA TO COMMENCE JUNE 6, 2009; DEADLINE FOR ARGENTINA BIDS EXTENDED TO JULY 10, 2009 AT REQUEST OF PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS
Petrolifera Petroleum Ltd.'s testing of its La Pinta No. 1 well on the Sierra Nevada licence in Colombia is anticipated to commence on June 6, 2009.
Petrolifera to begin La Pinta testing on June 6
2009-06-05 09:12 ET - News Release
Mr. R. A. Gusella reports
TESTING OF PETROLIFERA'S LA PINTA WELL IN COLOMBIA TO COMMENCE JUNE 6, 2009; DEADLINE FOR ARGENTINA BIDS EXTENDED TO JULY 10, 2009 AT REQUEST OF PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS
Petrolifera Petroleum Ltd.'s testing of its La Pinta No. 1 well on the Sierra Nevada licence in Colombia is anticipated to commence on June 6, 2009.
It is expected that the complete testing program will require between seven and 10 days, after which the rig will be released from the La Pinta No. 1 location. Results will be communicated by way of press release when they are conclusive and testing is completed.
The company also announced that at the request of a number of interested parties, the deadline for submission of bids related to the potential purchase of Petrolifera's Argentinian operations has been extended until July 10, 2009.
We seek Safe Harbor.
Soaring bond yields are setting the stage for a second round of interest rate hikes on residential mortgages in about a week.
After nudging rates higher on longer-term mortgages last Wednesday, Toronto-Dominion Bank is once again raising borrowing costs on its popular five-year, fixed-rate loan. Effective tomorrow, the posted rate on that mortgage moves 40 basis points higher to 5.85 per cent.
Last week, TD and the other banks increased their respective interest rates on five-year, fixed-rate mortgages by 20 basis points to 5.45 per cent.
While no major competitor had announced plans to follow TD's latest increase by late today, experts suggested that higher mortgages rates are likely inevitable since banks are facing higher borrowing costs on the bond market. Banks tap the bond market to finance mortgages because they lend out more money than they attract through deposits.
"We don't have a fully-matched book and I would guess that none of the Canadian banks have a fully-matched book in terms of deposits matching loans," said Joan Dal Bianco, vice-president of real estate secured lending for TD Canada Trust.
While mortgage rates rose slightly last week, that move was insufficient to offset the bank's higher costs because bond yields have climbed higher since that time. "And unfortunately, we're now having to cover that gap, or at least close it a little bit," Dal Bianco said.
When asked if consumers should expect even more mortgage rate increases, she replied: "I think we're going to see, over the next year, lots of changes as the economy starts showing positive signs."
The recent spike in bond yields is a global phenomenon and the increase in Canadian yields has actually been milder compared to other countries, said Doug Porter, deputy chief economist at BMO Capital Markets.
The main reason that yields are rising is because the bond market is beginning to price in the prospect of an economic recovery later this year or next year. Said Porter: "I guess that's the good news part of the story. The bad news is that there is actually a cost for the economy in terms of raising the cost of money for some borrowers."
To a lesser degree, longer-term yields are also rising because the bond market is worried about the future prospects for inflation as governments around the world issue massive amounts of debt to stimulate economic growth.
Porter, however, also noted that home sales have "perked up" a bit in the last couple of months, fuelling more consumer demand for mortgages. "That's probably played a small role in this rise in mortgage rates as well," he said.
While TD is certainly experiencing increased demand for mortgages, Dal Bianco insisted that factor played no role in the rate change. "It is strictly the bond market," she said.
Five-year, fixed-rate mortgages are traditionally the most popular option for homeowners. Nonetheless, Mark Chandler, a senior fixed income analyst RBC Capital Markets, said consumers should remember that longer-term mortgage rates are still sitting at near-historic lows.
"The hope that you can do better than that - or even maintain that for an extended period of time - that may be hoping for a little too much, really."
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