The first trial of five former executives accused of violating the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act for fraudulent stock transactions was held in the market manipulation case of SMBC Nikko Securities, a major securities company, and all of them pleaded not guilty.
SMBC Nikko Securities has charged six former executives and a corporation with market manipulation in violation of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act for engaging in illicit stock transactions, such as purchasing large quantities to maintain the stock price of certain stocks.
The first trial of five defendants, including former vice president Toshihiro Sato (60) and former general manager of the Equity Department Makoto Yamada (45), was held at the Tokyo District Court on May 5, and all of them pleaded not guilty.
In their opening statement, the prosecution argued that "Yamada and others were concerned that the stock price would fall significantly in a deal called a 'block offer' in which they bought a large amount of shares from major shareholders and resold them to investors, so they purchased a large number of shares with the aim of stabilizing the market, and reported this to former Vice President Sato and others."
On the other hand, Yamada's lawyer said, "I do not dispute that I bought stocks, but it is not for the purpose of stabilizing the market and it is not a crime."
In this case, SMBC Nikko Securities was fined 24 million yen and fined more than 2.7 billion yen in additional fines as a corporation in February, and the former deputy general manager of the Equity Division, which manages stocks, was sentenced to one year and six months in prison with a three-year suspended sentence.