香港反贪机构昨日起诉毕马威(KPMG)一名高管涉嫌在一宗有争议的首次公开发行(IPO)中行贿。此次IPO正受到香港证券监管机构的调查。
香港廉政公署(Independent Commission Against Corruption)声称，32岁的"高级经理"梁思哲(Leung Sze-chit)向他的一位同事行贿。
香港廉政公署在一份声明中表示："控罪指被告涉嫌于今年二月二十日，与另外一名人士，向毕马威一名雇员提供十万元，作为就洪良国际(Hontex International Holdings Company Limited)全球发售股份招股书拟备会计师报告的报酬。"
中国纺织品制造商洪良国际在去年12月份的股票发行中筹资10亿港元。
毕马威在对准备赴港上市的内地企业进行审计和开展尽职调查方面拥有良好的过往记录。该公司在一份声明中表示，被控的行贿行为是通过其内部热线发现的。
毕马威表示："在调查之后，涉案人员被停职，随后起草报告给……相关机构。"它补充称，该公司与监管机构全力合作。"毕马威禁止向其员工提供任何形式的行贿。"
梁思哲在今日开庭审理之前获得保释，记者未能联系上他本人以获取其置评。
梁思哲被拘将令相关机构加大对香港IPO质量的审查力度，并加剧了人们对于IPO前是否进行了充分尽职调查的担忧。
上月，香港证监会(SFC)史无前例地成功要求法庭下令冻结洪良国际IPO资金。香港证监会在一份文件中表示，此次IPO违反了《证券及期货条例》(Securities and Futures Ordinance)中的数项规定，即披露虚假或误导性信息以诱使他人购买证券、使用欺诈手段和提供虚假文件。
3月30日，香港证监会勒令洪良国际股票暂停交易，并成功地要求一家临时法庭下令冻结该公司银行账户上的8.32亿港元。昨日，证监会获得法庭批准，冻结洪良国际至多9.974亿港元的资产。
香港证监会表示："证监会指控洪良在其招股章程中，严重夸大了公司财政状况。假如证监会的指控成立，证监会将会寻求法院作出命令，安排将洪良上市筹得的资金，归还予那些曾在首次公开招股时认购并仍然持有洪良新股的投资者，以及那些在洪良上市后曾购入其股份的投资者。"
过去一年，香港证监会不可小觑的名望进一步增强。2009年4月，香港证监会成功阻止了香港最大电信公司提出的收购要约，并使得一系列内幕交易被判有罪。
译者/君悦
http://www.ftchinese.com/story/001032124
Hong Kong's anti-graft body yesterday charged a KPMG executive with bribery in connection with a controversial initial public offering that is the subject of an investigation by the territory's securities regulator.
The Independent Commission Against Corruption alleged that Leung Sze-chit, who it identified as a 32 year-old "senior manager", offered a bribe to one of his colleagues.
"The charge alleged that . . . the defendant, together with another person, offered HK$100,000 ($12,280) to his subordinate in relation to the global offering of Hontex International Holdings Company Limited," the ICAC said in a statement.
Hontex, a Chinese fabric maker, raised HK$1bn in a December share sale.
KPMG has a strong track record in auditing and conducting due diligence on mainland companies preparing to list in Hong Kong. In a statement, KPMG said the alleged payment was discovered through its internal hotline.
"After investigation, the member of staff in question was suspended by KPMG and a report was then made . . . to the relevant authorities," KPMG said, adding that it was co-operating fully with the authorities. "KPMG prohibits payments of any kind to its staff."
Mr Leung, who was released on bail pending a court appearance today, could not be reached for comment.
The arrest will increase scrutiny on the quality of Hong Kong IPOs, adding to concerns that not enough due diligence is being carried out prior to listings.
Last month, Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission obtained an unprecedented court order freezing IPO funds belonging to Hontex. In a filing, the SFC said the IPO had violated its rules, citing sections of the Securities and Futures Ordinance on disclosure of false or misleading information inducing the sale of securities, using fraudulent devices and providing false documents.
The regulator ordered Hontex's shares to be suspended on March 30, and successfully applied for an interim court injunction freezing HK$832m in the company's bank accounts. Yesterday it secured court approval to freeze assets of up to HK$997.4m.
"The SFC alleges that Hontex's financial position as outlined in its IPO prospectus has been materially overstated," the regulator said. "If . . . successful in establishing its allegations, the SFC will seek orders to restore the funds raised in the IPO to those who subscribed for the shares."
Hong Kong's market regulator has burnished its reputation as a force to be reckoned with over the past year. The SFC successfully blocked a buy-out offer for Hong Kong's largest telecommunications company in April 2009, and has secured a series of insider trading convictions.
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