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Alberta regulator seeks order against short seller in Badger Daylighting trades

Last Updated Aug 9, 2018 at 4:00 pm MDT

CALGARY – The Alberta Securities Commission is seeking an order prohibiting prominent American short-seller Marc Culver Cohodes from trading in securities of Calgary-based Badger Daylighting Ltd.

The provincial regulator says it is also seeking to have the California investor prohibited from making public declarations regarding Badger that he knows or should reasonably know are misleading or untrue.

In an application to be heard by the commission next week, ASC staff say Cohodes “misrepresented” on social media in June a picture of a Badger truck as support for his allegation of illegal dumping of toxic substances.

It says, in allegations that have not been proven, that Cohodes has made numerous public claims of a similar nature over a period of more than a year, coinciding with the acquisition of his short position.

In its notice of application, the ASC accuses Cohodes of trying to artificially manipulate the price of Badger securities, thus becoming a “threat” to the integrity of the capital market in Alberta.

In May, Badger said in a news release that the ASC had conducted an investigation into allegations made against it by short sellers and concluded no enforcement action would be taken.

In January, Home Capital Group of Toronto said it would defend itself against claims in a $4-million lawsuit filed by Cohodes alleging the company’s misrepresentations in its financial reporting cost him millions.

Companies in this article: (TSX:BAD, TSX:HCG)