Bangkok, 6 June 2018 ? The SEC has imposed civil sanction on two offenders, namely Mr. Jajjai Dhammarungruang and Ms. Benjamas Dhammarungruang, for using inside information to sell shares of Modernform Group Public Company Limited (MODERN). The offenders paid civil penalties and compensation for the received benefits, at the total amount of 2.58 million baht.

According to the referral from the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) and the SEC's further investigation, Jajjai, who was then Vice President and Executive Director of MODERN, had access to the information on the operating results of a specific business of MODERN while attending the Board of Executive Directors meeting. Such inside information supported the prediction that the net profit of the second quarter of 2016 would drop significantly from the preceding quarter.

Jajjai had taken advantage of the information to sell 1.3 million MODERN shares through the trading account of his daughter Benjamas before the company disclosed the financial statements for the said quarter to the public through the SET Electronic Information Transmission System on 15 August 2016. The financial statements recorded the net profit of 20.34 million baht, a 61.16 percent decrease from the preceding quarter.

Jajjai's act was a securities sale that took advantage of a material, non-public fact that influenced the securities price. The act was deemed an exploitation of third parties and liable to the offences under Section 241 and the punishments under Section 296 of the Securities and Exchange Act B.E. 2535 (1992) (SEA), which were in force at the time of offence commission. In addition, such act is currently deemed an offence under Section 242 and subject to the punishments under Section 296 and Section 296/2 of the SEA, as amended by the Securities and Exchange Act (No. 5) B.E. 2559 (2016). As to Benjamas, her assistance for Jajjai to commit the offence was itself an offence liable to the punishments under the said provisions in conjunction with Section 86 of the Criminal Code.

The Civil Sanction Committee decided to impose civil sanction on both offenders, who subsequently made a statement of consent to the civil sanction and fully complied therewith, as follows: (1) Jajjai paid a civil penalty of 1,249,000 baht and a compensation of 999,200 baht for the received benefit, totaling 2,248,200 baht, and (2) Benjamas paid a civil penalty of 333,333.33 baht. The SEC will submit the total amount of the civil penalties and the compensation to the Ministry of Finance as public revenue.

Apart from the civil sanction, the SEC banned Jajjai from holding the position of director or executive of any securities issuing company or listed company* for one year. 

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* Pursuant to the Notification of the Securities and Exchange Commission No. Kor Jor. 3/2560 Re: Determination of Untrustworthy Characteristics of Company Directors and Executives dated 23 January 2017.