Merrill hit with third SFC fine in two years

US bank Merrill Lynch has been reprimanded and fined HK$3.5 million ($451,000) by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for regulatory breaches dating back to before the global financial crisis. It represents the third time in the past two years that Merrill has been disciplined by the SFC, with fines totalling HK$10 million over the period. In this latest case, the regulator ruled that the broker-dealer had failed to take adequate steps to handle the complaints of…