Provenco faces insider trading action

The Securities Commission today filed insider trading proceedings against listed electronic payments systems company Provenco.

The commission named Provenco, Jeda Investments, Provenco directors Nicholas Gordon and David Wolfenden and former director Anthony Bradely as defendants in the proceedings.

The commission said its claim related to three periods of trading in Provenco shares between February and March 2003.

The commission claimed the defendants had traded Provenco shares or tipped others while in possession of information relating to the company's profit calculations, prospects of privatisation, share buy back plans, "expectation of certain commercial opportunities", and figures on proposed director and staff share purchases.

"Any or all of this inside information would, or would be likely, to have affected materially the price of Provenco shares if it, or they, had been publicly available at the time of share trading," the commission said in a statement.

The commission is seeking compensation and pecuniary penalties from the defendants.

- NZPA