Former Dubai bank chief fined AED44,000 by regulator

The former president of Euram Bank Asia, has been fined AED44,000 ($11,978) by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) for failing to disclose that he was being investigated as part of stock trading scandal in India. Euram Bank Asia is the Dubai-based joint venture between Euram Bank and Pan Asia Advisors. Arun Panchariya was last month stripped of his authorised individual status by the regulator for Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) after he was accused of trading irregularities by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Panchariya resigned as president of the bank on September 22 after being accused of misleading Indian investors by artificially inflating the value of shares through an elaborate global operation. The regulatory body confirmed on Sunday Arun Panchariya and his brother Satish Panchariya were both fined AED44,000 ($11,978) each for failing to disclose material regarding the investigation by the SEBI when they were applying for their DFSA licence in 2009. "It is imperative that authorised firms and authorised individuals are open and co-operate fully with the DFSA. The DFSA relies on firms and individuals to disclose appropriately any mandatory information and any other information of which the DFSA would reasonably be expected to be notified,” Paul Koster, chief executive of the DFSA said in a statement issued by the WAM news wire. “Accordingly, the DFSA will take action where firms and individuals have breached these requirements," he added. A spokesperson for DFSA confirmed Panchariya’s licence had been withdrawn on Sept 26. Euram Bank Asia’s CEO Peter Siegl told Arabian Business last week the bank was “operating as normal and had not been affected” by the events leading up to its president’s resignation. “This illegal activity took place in India in the local equity market… No clients were affected,” he said, adding the lender has retained its licence to trade in Dubai. The events “will not have any impact” on the bank’s long-term plans in Dubai, Siegl said. Panchariya’s company Pan Asia Advisors is based in London.