British Columbia Securities Commission

B.C. Residents and Nevada-based Company Breached Cease Trade Order and Made Misrepresentations

British Columbia Securities Commission trade orderVancouver – A British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) panel has found that three B.C. residents and a Nevada-based green energy company breached a cease trade order of the BCSC and failed to tell investors about the existence of the order.

ecoTECH (now known as Dong Fang Hui Le Inc.) and three of its top executives, Chief Executive Officer Colin V. Hall, Chief Financial Officer Rolf Eugster and Director Anne Sanders, sold $55,100 worth of securities in 2013 to 16 investors despite a cease trade order issued by the BCSC in 2012. In addition, they failed to tell investors about the order.

Hall, Sanders and ecoTECH – a reporting issuer in B.C. – also distributed $3.3 million worth of securities to 15 people as compensation for services rendered in breach of the order.

By neglecting to inform investors that the shares issued for cash were being issued in violation of a cease trade order, Hall, Eugster, Sanders and ecoTECH committed misrepresentation. The panel stated that “one of the acceptable risks associated with an investment (no matter how risky) cannot be the risk of misrepresentation.”

The panel will impose sanctions after considering submissions from BCSC staff and the respondents.

About the British Columbia Securities Commission (www.bcsc.bc.ca)  

The British Columbia Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating capital markets in British Columbia through the administration of the Securities Act. Our mission is to protect and promote the public interest by fostering:

  • A securities market that is fair and warrants public confidence
  • A dynamic and competitive securities industry that provides investment opportunities and access to capital