One of the largest participants in the ASX 24 Market has been fined $3.88 million by the Market Disciplinary Panel (MDP), following an ASIC investigation, for failing to prevent suspicious orders from being placed on the electricity and wheat futures market.
Societe Generale Securities Australia Pty Limited (SocGen) breached market integrity rules by allowing two of its clients to place 33 suspicious orders from May 2023 to February 2024.
This is ASIC's fifth enforcement action in 15 months relating to alleged manipulation in electricity and wheat futures on the ASX 24 Market.
Manipulation of the daily settlement price of electricity and wheat futures contracts has the potential to impact supplier funding costs, and in turn electricity and wheat prices for consumers.
Each order displayed characteristics of an intention to 'mark the close', meaning they were placed within the last two minutes before market close to influence the daily settlement price for the client's benefit.
The orders were placed during a volatile period in global energy and wheat markets caused by supply issues, including the Russia-Ukrainian War, creating ripe conditions for unscrupulous trading activity aimed to take advantage of and manipulate markets.
The MDP found SocGen should have suspected that all 33 orders were submitted with the intention of creating a false or misleading appearance in the market.
In its decision, the MDP noted market participants such as SocGen must be aware of, and responsible for, orders placed by their clients including orders placed through direct market access.
ASIC Chair Joe Longo said, 'This is about integrity and confidence in our markets that can have real world impacts on electricity and wheat prices.
'ASIC contacted SocGen on five occasions in 2023 to serve notices, ask questions or raise concerns about volatility in futures markets and suspicious orders placed by its clients.
'Despite ASIC's contact, SocGen failed to take timely and effective action, and permitted additional, suspicious orders to enter the market.
'SocGen's lack of response and inadequate remediation were made more significant because they are the second largest participant in the ASX 24 Market.'
The MDP found SocGen to be reckless in in failing to prevent further suspicious orders following ASIC's repeated warnings.
The MDP was also alarmed that the circumstances indicated a lack of effectiveness of SocGen's compliance and surveillance functions to detect and address manipulative market behaviour. This included a lack of training, skills and management oversight to adequately monitor the ASX 24 electricity and wheat futures market.
'Market gatekeepers have a duty to keep our markets safe. They have direct visibility over client trading and can prevent orders from being placed on the market.
'Missing suspicious orders puts the entire system at risk.
'Companies like SocGen must have appropriate preventative and detective tools and controls, including people with the right expertise as well as surveillance software, to ensure compliance,' Mr Longo said.
Background
As at 30 June 2023, SocGen was the second largest market participant on the ASX 24 Market, accounting for 11.8% of the total traded volume across the market.
SocGen is a wholly owned subsidiary of Societe Generale S.A. (SGSA) which at the end of December 2023 was ranked by assets as the world's 19th largest bank.
In recent years, ASIC has taken enforcement action against energy and commodities market manipulation. In addition to the MDP fine issued to SocGen:
- In June 2025, ASIC commenced civil penalty proceedings against Delta Power & Energy (Vales Point) Pty Ltd (formerly named Sunset Power International Pty Ltd) for allegedly manipulating the ASX 24 Market for electricity futures contracts (25-115MR)
- In September 2024, the MDP fined Macquarie Bank $4.995 million for gatekeeper failures in relation to suspicious orders placed by three of its clients in the ASX24 electricity futures market (24-211MR)
- In July 2024, ASIC commenced civil penalty proceedings against COFCO International Australia Pty Ltd and COFCO Resources SA for alleged manipulation in the ASX24 wheat futures market (24-163MR), and
- In May 2024, the MDP fined J.P. Morgan Securities Australia Limited $775,000 for market gatekeeper failures in relation to suspicious orders by its client in the ASX24 wheat futures market (24-093MR).
Market misconduct in energy and commodities derivatives markets was an ASIC enforcement priority in 2023.
SocGen did not contest the alleged breaches of Rule 3.1.2(1)(b)(iii) of the ASIC Market Integrity Rules (Futures Markets) 2017.
SocGen has complied with the Infringement Notice and paid the penalty.
Compliance with the infringement notice is not an admission of guilt or liability and by doing so, SocGen is not taken to have contravened subsection 798H(1) of the Corporations Act 2001.
View the infringement notice on ASIC's MDP Outcomes Register.
