Donald Dean Mackenzie has agreed to pay a penalty of $20,000 and accepts a three-month prohibition from seeking re-registration approval with an IIROC-regulated firm. Mr. Mackenzie has also agreed to pay $5,000 in costs to IIROC.
Mackenzie admitted to entering orders on the Toronto Stock Exchange for a particular stock without any intention that the orders would be executed, and which he knew or ought to have known would create an artificial bid price, contrary to UMIR Part 2.2(2)(b) and Policy 2.2.
The high closing bids were artificial as they misrepresented the performance and actual demand for the stock. At the time, 87 of Mr. Mackenzie’s clients held shares in that particular stock. Mr. Mackenzie also had personal and non-arm’s length accounts in which he had a beneficial interest in that particular stock.
IIROC began the investigation into Mr. Mackenzie’s conduct in March of 2009. The violations occurred when he was a Registered Representative with the Lethbridge branch of RBC Dominion Securities Inc., an IIROC-regulated firm. He is no longer a registrant with an IIROC-regulated firm.