CySEC concludes investigation against Ayers Alliance, imposes a €10,000 penalty on the owner

Tung San Tat Clement, the owner of Ayers Alliance Financial Group, received a €10,000 penalty from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC).

The penalty comes in the form of an administrative fine imposed by the regulator as part of its actions which followed a thorough investigation of Ayers Alliance. The penalty was announced earlier today, September 26, and in addition to the €10,000 penalty, Clement will also have to pay a daily penalty of €850 for each day that he refuses to comply with the regulations.

CySEC stated that Clement did not comply with the “obligation to provide timely, complete and accurate information to a request for collection of information addressed to him around May 2023 in the context of an investigation conducted by CySEC for Ayers Alliance Financial Group Ltd within the stipulated period.”

Ayers Alliance renounces its CIF license

Clement’s company, Ayers Alliance Financial Group, formerly known as Harborx Ltd., was investigated by the CySEC last August. The investigation was launched under the suspicion of possible violation of the local regulations. The regulator did not highlight any particular details regarding the action. However, it did say that the company might face certain financial penalties as well.

Ayers Alliance noted recently that it was facing difficulties, although this statement is believed to be separate from the CySEC-related situation. The firm said that the difficulties were related to its ability to pay out funds to all of its users.

Given its situation, it has decided to renounce its CIF license voluntarily, given that it is currently under regulatory scrutiny. Ayers Alliance noted that the decision came after carefully considering and evaluating its current business operations. The has found that the circumstances are beyond its immediate control, which is why it is currently not able to continue its investment activities. This has left it with only one option: to give up the license, which it called a “difficult step.”

Ayers Alliance has a history of clashing with the regulators

The company’s initial issues started in April 2022. At the time, CySEC discovered that the firm was violating the mandatory staffing requirements in its risk-management department. The regulator reacted back then, as well, stopping the firm from employing more people who didn’t have the necessary knowledge, skills, and expertise for the roles they were applying for.

Exactly a year later, in April of this year, the Cypriot regulator made a move against the company as well, imposing sanctions due to its violation of regulations regarding the safeguarding of customer assets. At the time, the regulator ordered it to stop cooperating with a third-party company that was responsible for maintaining client deposits in the next six months.

In other words, the company is not a stranger to regulatory interventions for questionable business moves, and now, its owner is facing regulatory action directly