The Financial Supervisory Authority limits short selling activities
Due to extraordinary market circumstances, and to restore and maintain financial stability, the Financial Supervisory Authority has concluded to define the short selling of shares of certain Issuers as behaviour opposed to accepted market practices. As such, a person who behaves in such a manner may be found guilty of market abuse in accordance with Article 117 of the Act on Securities Transactions No. 108/2007.
It is therefore ordered that, as of 7 October 2008, all persons are prohibited from short selling the shares of Glitnir banki hf., Kaupþing banki hf., Landsbanki Íslands hf., Straumur-Burðarás fjárfestingarbanki hf., Spron hf. and Exista hf., which have been admitted to trading on a regulated market in Iceland, unless that person has the shares in his custody at the time of the offer, and notifies the Financial Supervisory Authority of the transaction immediately.
The prohibition also includes any instrument with the same purpose and the same economic exposure as the short selling of the shares of the Issuers as well as the short selling of financial instruments whose value depends on the value of those shares.
The decision can be read here.
For further information for the media please contact Íris Björk Hreinsdóttir, iris@fme.is or Úrsúla Ingvarsdóttir, ursula@fme.is tel. +354 525 27 00