'Happy Ghost' HK actor Raymond Wong, 80, convicted of insider trading, asks for leniency by citing stress & philanthropy efforts

Veteran Hong Kong movie producer and actor Raymond Wong was found guilty on May 22 of sharing insider information with his sister to trade shares of an entertainment company that he chaired and had a controlling stake in at the time.

It allowed her to earn a total net profit that exceeded HK$1 million (about S$163,000), according to a press statement by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong.

In a mitigation plea following the court verdict, Wong's lawyer said the 80-year-old was still taking medication after recovering from cancer, and that the court case has caused him great mental and psychological stress, HK01 reported.

The lawyer also highlighted Wong's contributions to Hong Kong's film and television industry, and philanthropic deeds including donating HK$5 million (S$815,000) to China during the pandemic.

Sharing non-public information

As an actor, Wong is known for starring in movies such as the "Happy Ghost" series and the "All’s Well, Ends Well" series.

He was also a producer behind the "Ip Man" movie series.

In 2009, he founded Pegasus Entertainment Holdings, now known as Transmit Entertainment, with his son.

After a 16-day criminal trial, a Hong Kong court ruled that in 2017, Wong advised his sister to trade the company’s shares well before the inside information was disclosed to the market.

It happened during negotiations for Wong to sell his controlling stake in Pegasus.

He became aware of price‑sensitive and non‑public information, and after receiving HK$10 million (S$1.6 million) from a potential buyer, he transferred a total of HK$2 million (S$326,000) to his sister.

She started buying Pegasus shares that same day.

Wong also started sending WhatsApp messages to his sister, advising her on the timing and the price to buy Pegasus shares, according to the SFC statement.

Among the messages read out in court was one where Wong told his sister, "Buy as much as you can when it is under HK$0.20 [S$0.03]," as quoted by South China Morning Post.

His defence

During the trial, Wong denied telling his sister to buy the company's shares, claiming that he was being sarcastic in such messages.

However, the court found this explanation "absurd and illogical".

The prosecutor added that Wong's sister replied to such messages saying that she had bought additional shares afterwards.

Caused him stress

Wong's lawyer pleaded for leniency, saying that in addition to his cancer recovery, Wong was also required to take medication from a psychiatrist, HK01 reported.

The case has also been long drawn, lasting eight years since the SFC first took action against him 2017, resulting in serious psychological and mental stress for Wong and his family, the lawyer argued.

The producer also allegedly received threats due to the case, which alarmed him and prompted him to make a police report.

Philanthropic contributions

As part of the mitigation plea, Wong's lawyer also presented to the court letters from other entertainment industry figures who knew the producer.

Virginia Lok, executive director of Shaw Brothers, wrote to highlight Wong's age and years of contributions to Hong Kong film and television.

The lawyer also brought up Wong's donations during the pandemic to argue that the producer did not share inside information with his sister out of personal greed.

Wong did not proactively offer the information, but was responding to his sister's requests, the lawyer argued.

He has also decided to retire and focus on charity work and his YouTube channel, which includes videos of himself singing.

A first-time offender, Wong has learnt a valuable lesson from the court case, and wishes for a lenient sentence, his lawyer added.

Wong will be sentenced on Jun. 9.