Ex-Goldman adviser banned in Hong Kong

An ex-Goldman Sachs adviser in Hong Kong has been barred from the financial services industry for two years after she invested almost $2 million of her client's money on derivatives contracts without approval, regulators said Thursday. The action comes almost a year after the client — Joyce Tsang, the former chairwoman of a well-known beauty chain called Modern Beauty Salon — sued the adviser and Goldman Sachs, claiming she lost money because of a risky derivatives trade she never authorized. The adviser, Ronnie Wong Wang, is accused of exposing an affluent client to a high-risk investment, amounting to 13.8 million Hong Kong dollars (US$1.78 million), without the client's consent, according to a statement issued by the Securities and Futures Commission. Wong also allegedly presented to the client inaccurate information about the investment portfolio, overstating the client's earnings by $1.72 million and including profits that had not yet accrued, the watchdog said. Wong admitted she had entered into the transaction without proper authorization, but claimed it was a good investment, the regulator said in the statement. Responding to the commission's decision, Tsang said she welcomed it and urged Goldman to make compensation for all her losses. "The decision proves and supports my complaints against Goldman Sachs," Tsang said in a statement. Tsang has taken legal action against Wong and Goldman, but no hearing date has been fixed, according to Hill & Knowlton Asia Ltd., a public relations agency hired by Tsang.