The victims of Harinvest are considering suing the institutions of the stock market as well

The anger of the clients that suffered losses with"Harinvest" is growing from one day to the next, as they are not getting any answer from the institutions of the stock market to the question that they have repeatedly: "What are we going to do?"

At the end of last year, the Financial Oversight Authority (ASF) shut down "Harinvest" and has levied harsh fines against the officials of the company, after the clients found that they had been left without money and shares in their accounts, which the brokerage firm used to cover up its own structured trades products.

Disappointed by the reactions of the institutions of the stock market, the plaintiffs are considering suing Harinvest, the ASF and the Bucharest Stock Exchange, aside from Harinvest, because they consider them to be equally liable for what happened, according to some sources. The clients of "Harinvest" are unhappy that the ASF has asked them to send in complaints by January 15th, as they say that the Authority should have already had all the necessary information. Moreover, none of the victims accept the idea that the blame lies only with a brokerage firm.

In spite of this, some of the investors who lost money are worried that they are waging a futile battle against the system, especially since the shareholders of "Harinvest" are well connected politically, according to our sources.

• The court of Vâlcea has suspended a right that SSIF Broker did not have anyway

Even though the clients accusing of "Harinvest" Râmnicu Vâlcea of taking their money and shares, have not yet taken the matter to court, another suit has gotten to court, in which "Harinvest" plays the part of a plaintiff.

The Court of Vâlcea very hastily tried the lawsuit of "Harinvest" by which it requested the suspension the right of SSIF Broker to dispose of 113,000 shares of the BSE, filed at the end of December, and ruled in favor of "Harinvest", disregarding the fact that in actuality SSIF Broker did not own those shares, and had merely intermediated their transfer. In other words, the Court of Vâlcea has suspended a right which SSIF Broker did not have anyway.

SSIF Broker sent us the following statement: "Concerning the civil ruling no. 1713/2013 of the Court of Vâlcea, which suspends the rights of disposition over 113000 shares of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, SSIF Broker SA states that the company was not and is not currently the owner of the shares issued by the BSE which are the object of this ruling, as the company acts as a mere intermediary, in compliance with the rules and regulations in effect.

We have filed an appeal within the legal delays, and we will keep the investors and shareholders of SSIF Broker informed through the reports issued on every occasion when the law requires us to do so".

The court has denied the arguments filed by SSIF Broker.

By the time the newspaper went to print, the representatives of "Harinvest" did not send us their position concerning the lawsuit against SSIF Broker.

It would seem that the block of 113,000 shares of the BSE had been the object of a sell-out initiated by "Harinvest", and SSIF Broker intermediated their acquisition by one of its clients.

The representatives of "Harinvest" mentioned the sale of the shares of the BSE in a press release bearing the company's header, but with no signature, issued in December. According to it, the sale of the 113,000 shares owned by Harinvest on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, worth approximately 3 million lei, was done through SSIF Broker Cluj, without an intermediation contract signed with an entitled Harinvest employee and without a sale order.