The Securities and Futures Commission has obtained an interlocutory asset freezing order to freeze up to HK$235 million's worth of assets of Anita Leung Fung-yee Maria, former chief executive and executive director of SMI Culture & Travel Group.
Early in 2019, SFC commenced legal proceedings against Leung, her husband Philip Wong Yu-hong, SMI's former chairman and non-executive director, and Tsiang Hoi-fong, the firm's former executive director.
The SFC alleges that between 2010 and 2012, Leung, Wong and/or Tsiang implemented a fraudulent scheme and the unjust profits gained by Leung or Wong was in the range of HK$35.2 million to HK$74.27 million.
Wong, also a former Legislative Council member, passed away in 2021.
SFC said yesterday that its priority is to preserve assets to satisfy any compensation order that the court may impose at the conclusion of the legal proceedings against Leung and two others.
Under the order, Leung must not remove any of her assets from Hong Kong. She also must not dispose of, deal with or diminish the value of any of her assets, whether within or outside Hong Kong, up to the value of HK$235 million.
She is also prohibited from taking any steps to implement terms or proceed to completion for two agreements she allegedly entered into in August 2023 regarding her two properties in Shanghai and Canada. The order against Leung will remain in place until the final determination of proceedings.
In granting this order, the court was satisfied that the evidence put forward by SFC has demonstrated that "Leung is adept at using an extensive network of corporate and offshore entities as nominees for channeling funds and concealing her illicit activities." In its view, Leung "would have little hesitation in dissipating assets to avoid the consequence of a judgment against her."
Anita Leung is a famous novelist and her late husband Philip Wong was a former lawmaker. Sing Tao
