The Financial Services Authority (OJK) has levied a significant fine of IDR 5.35 billion against a prominent social media influencer, identified by the initials BVN, for manipulating stock prices. BVN was found to have engaged in market manipulation schemes, primarily by disseminating misleading information on social media platforms during various stock trading periods between 2021 and 2022.
OJK’s thorough investigation revealed BVN’s involvement in manipulating the shares of several companies. These included PT Agro Yasa Lestari Tbk (AYLS) during two distinct periods (September 1 to 27, 2021, and November 8 to December 29, 2021), PT MD Pictures Tbk (FILM) from January 12 to December 27, 2021, and PT Bintang Samudera Mandiri Lines Tbk (BSML) from March 8 to June 17, 2022. The regulatory body’s examination involved an in-depth analysis of stock transaction data, extensive tracing of BVN’s social media activities, identification of specific stock transaction patterns, and other crucial investigative facts, as detailed in an OJK statement released on Friday (20/2).
One of BVN’s primary manipulation tactics involved executing both buy and sell orders for several stocks using multiple securities accounts. This strategic pattern led to the formation of artificial stock prices that did not genuinely reflect the true forces of supply and demand. Such actions created a misleading impression of active trading on the stock exchange, thereby influencing potential investors to make uninformed trading decisions based on fabricated market conditions.
Furthermore, BVN leveraged their social media presence to provide information on specific stocks, announce planned share purchases, or forecast particular stock price movements. Crucially, BVN simultaneously engaged in selling or buying those very shares, capitalizing on the reactions and subsequent trading activities of their followers—a classic “pump and dump” scheme. These illicit actions were found to be in direct violation of Article 90 of the Capital Market Law (UUPM) as amended by Article 22 number 33 of the UUPPSK, Article 91 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 34 UUPPSK, and Article 92 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 35 UUPPSK, covering the trading cases for AYLS, FILM, and BSML.
Further Market Manipulation Sanctions
In addition to the actions taken against BVN, the OJK also imposed administrative sanctions, including fines, on three separate entities involved in the manipulation of PT Impack Pratama Industri Tbk (IMPC) shares between January and April 2016. The investigation into IMPC’s trading activities uncovered practices that created a false or misleading impression concerning trading activities, market conditions, or stock prices on the stock exchange.
The administrative sanctions were imposed as follows:
1. PT Dana Mitra Kencana was fined IDR 2.1 billion. The company was found to have violated Article 91 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 34 UUPPSK, and Article 92 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 35 UUPPSK. PT Dana Mitra Kencana indirectly facilitated IMPC stock transactions in the regular market during the specified period by sending and receiving funds for trading purposes, including IMPC shares, to 17 customers. The total value of interconnected transactions among these customers reached IDR 43.729 billion. These transactions created a deceptive market image regarding IMPC’s trading activity and price, not based on genuine supply and demand, with the intent to influence others to trade IMPC shares.
2. Sdr UPT and Sdr MLN were each fined IDR 1.8 billion. They were found guilty of violating Article 91 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 34 UUPPSK, and Article 92 UUPM as amended by Article 22 number 35 UUPPSK. Collaborating, Sdr. UPT and Sdr. MLN indirectly executed IMPC stock transactions during January to April 2016 in the regular market. They achieved this by sending and receiving funds for trading, including IMPC shares, through 12 customers, with the total value of interconnected transactions reaching IDR 49.122 billion. Similar to the previous case, these transactions generated a misleading portrayal of IMPC’s trading activity and market price, designed to sway other parties into trading the stock, rather than reflecting actual market forces.
These sanctions underscore the OJK’s unwavering commitment to bolstering the integrity, transparency, and public trust within Indonesia’s capital market industry. The OJK remains dedicated to consistently and proportionally enforcing regulations based on applicable laws, striving to cultivate an Indonesian capital market that is orderly, fair, efficient, integrated, competitive, and sustainable.
Summary
The Financial Services Authority (OJK) has imposed a fine of