AIM slaps Seymour Pierce with record £400,000 fine

Seymour Pierce, the largest adviser to companies on the junior AIM stock exchange, was today handed the biggest-ever fine for a firm and publicly censured by the market's Disciplinary Committee.

It has been fined £400,000 easily beating the previous highest fine of £225,000 levied on Astaire & Co two years ago.

AIM said Seymour Pierce had twice failed to meet the standards required by a Nominated Adviser. In one case it failed to tell a client company that it should tell the market it was in financial difficulties at the same time as it had been trying to raise fresh capital for it. In the other it failed to carry out full background checks on the suitability of a director in a company planning to list on AIM.

Nilam Statham, head of AIM Regulation, said: "The role of the Nomad is central to AIM's regulatory framework. Nomads have important responsibilities both in assessing the suitability of companies for the public market and in properly advising and guiding companies once admitted to AIM."

Phillip Wale, the new chief executive of Seymour Pierce, said: "We agree with the committee's findings and accept that we let processes and controls drop a bit. Since these events, we have put in place major changes and are confident that our systems and procedures are now of the highest standard."