Germany bans Wirecard ‘shorting’ as prosecutors probe journalist
Volatility in the payments firm’s stock prompts action by German watchdog
Frankfurt — Germany’s financial watchdog has banned “short” selling of Wirecard shares due to volatility in the payments firm’s stock following reports in the Financial Times which are now the subject of an investigation by German authorities. Munich prosecutors said on Monday that they were investigating a Financial Times journalist, confirming that they had widened a probe into a possible violation of securities trading rules. The Financial Times rejected as “baseless and false” any allegations against the newspaper or its journalists of market manipulation or unethical reporting relating to Wirecard. A spokeswoman for the Munich prosecutors said their inquiry, which was in response to a criminal complaint, was at an early stage and declined to give any further details. Bafin, Germany’s financial markets regulator, said the ban on “shorting” Wirecard was a first for an individual stock, although it outlawed shorting of bank shares in 2008. Short selling is when an investor borrows...
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