Probe into bourse’s watchdog
A public prosecutor yesterday called for an investigation into whether members of the Capital Market Commission (CMC) were guilty of breaking the law in not stopping companies under judicial investigation from trading on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE). Prosecutor Pantelis Stragalis wants to know if members of the CMC from January 1, 1999 to April 20, 2000 are guilty of dereliction of duty in not striking several companies off the ASE’s board when they knew that there was a serious possibility that they were breaking stock exchange law. Stragalis has sent the brief to the 19th investigating magistrate, disagreeing with the opinion of investigating judge Constantina Bourboulia who probed 23 companies, suspected of manipulating shares during the boom of 1999, and proposed the investigation be shelved. Bourboulia is currently under investigation herself for alleged conflict of interest in having an affair with the lawyer of companies being probed. Stragalis asked the investigating magistrate to see whether banking confidentiality could be lifted for businessmen allegedly implicated.
