JP Morgan fined in South Korea for transaction information leakage

JP Morgan's brokerage unit in South Korea was fined over illegal leakage of its clients' transaction information, Seoul's financial watchdog said. JP Morgan Securities in Seoul was fined 37.5 million won (35, 000 U.S. dollars) by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) as the U.S. investment bank's Seoul office illegally provided information on transactions ordered by clients. The regulator issued an institutional warning against the office, and took disciplinary measures against the office's four executives and staff members. From July 22, 2009 to Oct. 11, 2012, the Seoul office allowed as many as 79 executives and staffs in six overseas affiliates to check transaction orders and dealings from 6,029 clients without their consent on a real time basis. The office also provided information on stock transactions of its affiliate illegally to 65 institutional investors via online messengers over a total of 1,705 times during the period of July 28, 2009 to Dec. 8, 2011. Furthermore, it offered information on block trading instructed by clients to 79 institutional investors through the messengers over a total of 217 times between Oct. 5, 2009 and April 29, 2011.