FSA fines Societe Generale £1.5m for reporting inaccuracies

The Financial Services Authority has fined the London branch of Société Générale £1.5m for failing to provide accurate transaction reports.

This is the sixth case since August 2009 where the FSA has taken action against a financial institution for failing to make accurate transaction reports.

The markets watchdog said the fine reflected the seriousness of SocGen’s failure to submit accurate reports for approximately 80% of its reportable transactions, across all of its asset classes, for a period of over two years.

Between November 2007 and February 2010, SocGen either failed to report, or inaccurately reported, 18.8 million of its 23.5 million reportable transactions, the FSA said.

These breaches occurred despite the FSA sending repeated reminders to firms of their obligations to provide accurate data and of the importance of compliance with the FSA rules on transaction reporting.

Margaret Cole, director of enforcement and financial crime, said:
“SocGen failed to accurately report a very high proportion of its transactions for a significant length of time. This failure is a serious breach of our rules as it can have a damaging impact on our ability to detect and investigate suspected market abuse.

"We will continue to monitor the quality of firm reporting and we are committed to taking action where necessary to ensure firms comply with their reporting obligations."

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