JPMorgan, UBS Dropped Hedge Fund Embroiled in HK Probe
(Bloomberg) — JPMorgan Chase & Co. and UBS Group AG cut prime brokerage ties with the investment firm that was raided by authorities during a probe into alleged insider dealing in Hong Kong well before the investigation was made public, according to people familiar with the matter.
The two banks stopped providing prime brokerage services to Infini Capital Management Ltd. months ago, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
Together with Standard Chartered Plc, they were listed as Infini’s prime brokers in a March 2025 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
It’s unclear if JPMorgan and UBS ceased to do other business with Infini, beyond prime brokerage services, and what exactly prompted the decision. Representatives for JPMorgan, UBS and Standard Chartered declined to comment. Infini didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Hong Kong’s financial regulators and anti-graft agency on Thursday said they had arrested eight people as part of an investigation into a HK$315 million ($40 million) insider dealing and corruption scheme involving two major brokerages and a hedge fund manager.
While they didn’t mention the entities involved, people familiar with the matter said the local offices of Citic Securities Co., Guotai Junan International Holdings Ltd. and Infini were raided this week.
Hong Kong’s financial industry is under increasing scrutiny, in the midst of a resurgence of deal activity. Share placements and initial public offerings have surged in the past year, with first-time share sales setting a four-year high in 2025. Regulators have also warned banks over the quality of IPO applications.
The investigation centers on allegations that executives at the securities firms accepted more than HK$4 million in bribes from a hedge fund manager. In exchange, they allegedly leaked non-public details regarding share placements for several Hong Kong-listed companies.
Infini has emerged as an active player in Hong Kong equity capital markets, in several cases acting as the sole buyer of share placements. Three of the firm’s executives have been unreachable by the company, according to one of the people. The equity capital markets deals currently handled by the executives have been put on hold, the person said. Several brokers have reached out to clarify the status of the ongoing investigation.
The firm was founded by Tony Chin, a former banker at Morgan Stanley and HSBC Holdings Plc, in 2015 as a proprietary trading firm, according to its website. It later opened to external capital and offers a range of trading strategies, it said.
–With assistance from Jeanny Yu and Denise Wee.
(Updates with Standard Chartered response, Infini background in last)
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