Apologies for the tardiness of this week’s column. Half term fun and games are partly to blame. But so is a bully boy letter from a well-known City law firm which is prompting me to report myself to the FSA/FCA to ask the regulator to investigate me for market abuse. I shall report myself at the weekend knowing full well that I have not breached the Financial Services Markets Act of 2000 but I want this clarified in order to protect free speech.
Let me explain what has gone on. My memory is crystal clear. I broke a news story on a company listed on the AIM Cesspit. My source was impeccable. The story was 95% correct and when the truth was finally dragged from the company in question I wrote an immediate follow up flagging the one error (i.e. a correction). But also pointing out what an investment basket case this was. At no stage until this week did the company contact me. Indeed it declined even to return a phone call when I wanted to run one piece by it.
The company does not like me. And so this week I received a lawyers letter demanding that I remove the articles in their entirety and threatening me by saying that this is market abuse and that if I do not comply they may report me to the FCA for market abuse. You will note the aim here is not to get a correction on the one small factual error but to get a hostile article (95% of which is verifiably correct) removed in its entirety.
This is not about ensuring fair reporting it is an attack on free speech. It is the rich and powerful trying to suppress hostile or embarrassing material.
on Spreadbet Magazine | Comments