Tribunal partly upholds the Financial Conduct Authority’s decision to fine Tariq Carrimjee for assisting a client to commit market abuse

Press Releases First published: Last updated: 06/03/2015

The Upper Tribunal (Tribunal) has released its decision in relation to Tariq Carrimjee of Somerset Asset Management LLP (Somerset).  The Tribunal upheld the FCA’s decision to impose a penalty of £89,004 and found that Carrimjee’s failings were serious and that a significant financial penalty was appropriate.

The Tribunal’s decision was issued on 6 March 2015 after 3 days of hearing during September 2014.  It remains open to the parties to appeal this judgment.  This decision follows the Final Notices issued to Mr Goenka, Mrs Parikh and Mr Davis in relation to the same matter.

Carrimjee, an investment and fund manager, held senior positions at Somerset at the relevant time and was responsible for compliance oversight.  The Tribunal found that Carrimjee failed to act with due skill, care and diligence in failing to escalate the risk that his client, Rameshkumar Goenka, might have been intending to engage in market manipulation, and that this risk should have been apparent to Carrimjee.   It did not uphold the FCA’s decision that Mr Carrimjee had acted without integrity.

This is the first time since changes were made to the Tribunal’s powers that the Tribunal has remitted part of a case back to the FCA to reconsider and reach a decision as to the extent of any prohibition in accordance with the findings of the Tribunal.

In November 2011 Goenka was fined $9,621,240 (approximately £6 million) for market abuse.

Mr Davis, the senior partner and compliance officer at Paul E Schweder Miller & Co and Vandana Parikh, the broker at the same firm who executed the trades, were fined £70,258 and £45,673 in July 2012 and August 2013, respectively.  The FCA concluded that Parikh failed to act with due skill, care and diligence by explaining the process of manipulation to Goenka without recognising the risk that this posed and without proper challenge or enquiry as to his intentions.

Notes to editors

  1. The Judgment.
  2. The Final Notices for Goenka, Davis and Parikh.
  3. The Decision Notice for Carrimjee.
  4. The relevant securities were Global Depository Receipts (GDRs). These are parcels of shares in a particular company which are listed and traded on international exchanges separately from the company’s shares. In publishing the Notices, the FCA is not in any way criticising Reliance or Gazprom.
  5. Section 133 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 which relates to proceedings before the Tribunal was amended on 1 April 2013.
  6. On the 1 April 2013 the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) became responsible for the conduct supervision of all regulated financial firms and the prudential supervision of those not supervised by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA).
  7. The FCA has an overarching strategic objective of ensuring the relevant markets function well. To support this it has three operational objectives: to secure an appropriate degree of protection for consumers; to protect and enhance the integrity of the UK financial system; and to promote effective competition in the interests of consumers.
  8. Find out more information about the FCA.