Special Report: Hidden hands behind penny stock surge under scrutiny TheEdge Wed, Apr 21, 2021 05:00pm - 1 day ago
A few weeks ago, the authorities are understood to have raided several offices in Menara Lien Hoe in Persiaran Tropicana in the vicinity of the Tropicana Golf and Country Club in Selangor, looking for information on a group of individuals involved in manipulating penny stocks on the Bursa Malaysia.
The authorities, it seems, are after a group of individuals who control as many as 60 companies on Bursa Malaysia and appear to manipulate share prices and siphon out funds from these companies via numerous cash calls and the subsequent acquisition of assets. Also being scrutinised are the “asset-shuffling exercises” undertaken by many of the companies. There is also talk that they are allegedly involved in the legitimising of ill-gotten gains or money-laundering activities.
It is also learnt that there is a ringleader, an individual in his late 40s, who is not directly linked to any of the companies but efficiently uses proxies to mask his presence, utilising, instead, several generals who control the shares in many of them.
The Edge managed to identify almost 40 out of the 60 companies controlled by the same few individuals. (See chart next page.)
The ringleader controls, among others, Sanston Financial Group Ltd. The web of control appears to flow from Hong Kong-based Sanston.
According to its website, Sanston is a specialist securities broking firm regulated by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission.
Despite the ringleader’s low profile, some blogs — equating him to Datuk John Soh Chee Wen, who is facing trial in Singapore for stock manipulation — have begun to talk about him and his generals, and their alleged stock manipulation activities that have been going on for some time now.
While two government authorities are said to have raided the premises of companies in Menara Lien Hoe, it is understood that the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) was not part of the exercise. In response to a query on whether an investigation was ongoing, the SC replied: “As a matter of policy, the SC does not comment or respond to queries on whether it is investigating any individual or entity.”
A source close to the SC, however, says that the individuals and their stock manipulation operations have been “on the SC’s radar” for some time now.
Market talk, meanwhile, has it that the Inland Revenue Board and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission were the two government agencies that paid the companies a visit, carting away documents.
“He (the ring leader) is a smart cookie ... he doesn’t surface, so the trails do not lead to him. It’s hard to pin him down, you can’t prove that he is behind the whole thing (manipulation and pillage of companies and its shares),” says one source.
Another source says the central bank is monitoring the ringleader and his generals and could be looking to uncover money-laundering activities.
Menara Lien Hoe houses 11 of the almost 40 companies in the web. AT Systemization Bhd (ATS), MLabs Systems Bhd, Focus Dynamics Group Bhd, mTouche Technology Bhd, Fintec Global Bhd, XOX Bhd, M3Technologies (Asia) Bhd, NetX Holdings Bhd, Lambo Group Bhd, Key Alliance Group Bhd and Vsolar Group Bhd have their principal place of business, head office, business office or corporate office in the building in Petaling Jaya.
The web of related companies In September last year, The Edge ran a special report on the same group, entitled “Hidden Hands Behind Penny Stock Surge”. Back then, sources say, the group had gained control — either via shareholding or the board — of 36 companies, out of which 21 were identified. Now, the number of companies under the group is understood to have ballooned to 60.
At the centre of the web is Fintec Global, while the flagship company of the group is Focus Dynamics, a company which has a market value of more than RM3 billion, but which, for its financial year ended December 2020, registered a mere RM16.72 million in net profit from RM66.26 million in revenue. According to the notes accompanying Focus Dynamic’s results, the profit was attributable to “fair value gain on quoted investment”, among others.
As at end-2020, Focus Dynamics had accumulated losses of RM419.92 million, making it hard to justify its market capitalisation of more than RM3 billion, which grants it a place on the MSCI Index.
Focus Dynamics’ net asset per share as at end-December 2020 was a mere 2.81 sen.
Its core business, after all, is in food and beverage — operating seven clubs and lounges, and related facilities.
In April 2020, Focus Dynamics was trading at 13 sen a share, but gained 550% to reach 84.5 sen by November the same year, for no apparent reason. (See table.)
Some of the companies in which Focus Dynamics has stakes include Brahim’s Holdings Bhd, where it has 16.08% equity interest. Brahim’s is best known for having a 70% stake in Brahim’s SATS Food Services Sd
Well done dompeilee & OppurtunityHunter , I collect my tidy profit by selling at 11.5 and buying at 10.5 ......sipping champagne now...my cost is now 10.6cts...continue to post & condemn the counter ...it is welcome..
Last big batch of 24.5 million PA conversion and it will be sell down to 10.5cts again from this desperate investors and I be there to collect at 10.5 cts...
Thanks & pls post more...real music to the ear ..
Cheers to guys who have faith in this counter trading at historic PE of 35 and RM130M plus in CASH... wait till they start doing the share buy back ...
Dompeilee post: Seems like endless tickets coming out 2 sell @ 10.5c...........................................
How come? Yesterday got people here said the counter will drop to 7 cents. I queued at that cents. But the counter boosted at the last session, am I miss the reversal? Why so many people buy at 10.5 cents to 11.5 cents? According to many experts here, the counter is fake and will be PN 17 anytime.
TillyLovers, ask Dompeilee, OppurtunityHunter(including his alias posts) etc etc , about it...they have the answers..
However , please note the 24.5M PA conversion due for listing tomorrow and they be some selling pressure ...once it is absorb , I do not expect any further big batch of conversion happening...at the same time , the counter also has ridden of arbitrage trading on the PA conversion which will put selling pressure on Focus..
Guys , btw, I will expect many of the Naysayers to disappear next week if the PA conversion are ALL well absorbed....that is key..
I also believe ALL the force selling for many unfortunate investors are done with at this price..
I expect those guys willwith malicious intention or sour grape OR NOthing To DO Self proclaimed SIFUS or concerned Members be very quite very2 soon or change their IDs very soon ..... ...let see whether they dare to appear next week...but I be around to face them .......
Everyday post rubbish article here also can't be able to push to 0.005, 10 cents also can't break how to get 0.005 ? Really a bunch of useless idioxt kiasu kiasi.
Thank you to The Edge, so we retailers know the truth behind the dirty game. But, jlex11 seem like he support this dirty game. hehehe. The reason you know I know lah
OppurtunityHunter , do what you want and made a further fool of yourself.........I sympathised with you for for your past bad venture with one of the company as listed in the list which you post.....sour grape and cannot accept the fact on your past misadventure ...........
Check him out and you know what I meant ...likely will change his IDs too.... and very soon ..
Cheers guys ... but will be another diff days tomorrow b4 a smooth ride hopefully , thereafter........
@jlex11, you are very funny. Just like i post here will make you loss a lot of money. Why ? you scare retailers know the bau and avoid this counter ?? Then worth for me to post more
@OpporturnityHunter have you taken your medicine today ? Your mental got serious problem, seems become more serious. Take good care my new obedient doggie, I don't want to lose my new found doggie.
Posted so many fake news but Focus still the top 3 most active stock, price can't even break 10 cents still dreaming to buy at 0.005. Just continue to recycle more so that more ppl could know you better, a psycho hunter.
@OpporturnityHunter really pity you, loss so much money in share market and ended up with serious mental problem, who asked you to be so greedy until all hard-earned money gone with the syndicates.
greedy44444 , what a nice post.... really music to the ear ...someone says I will not sleep soundly tonight ... really ..going to have a nice sleep tonight but someone just won't ...off course u know who ya..
@Greedy44444& @ jlex11, stop seducing retailers to fall into your trap. One reply, 3 posting. 5 reply meaning 15 posting for me today up to this moment. Please refer to the below
This book is the result of the author's many years of experience and observation throughout his 26 years in the stockbroking industry. It was written for general public to learn to invest based on facts and not on fantasies or hearsay....
651158
2,401 posts
Posted by 651158 > 2021-04-22 16:58 | Report Abuse
how collect 0.110 Now can slowly sell up 0.115 can get the profit 0.005 lo