positive results from phase 1b study, page-10

Short selling is the practice of selling shares one does not own...

Strictly speaking, they are not in your account when you sell them!

This can be done in several ways, either by obtaining access, or "rights" to stock held by someone else, via shorting companies listed on the ASX for shorting, or via a covered short position. A "Covered" short position basically means you have access to stock to replace (or cover) the stock you sold.

Another approach is to sell stock and buy options to cover the sale...then arrange for the conversion of said options prior to the t+3 settlement...this only works however with a complicit Company, as most will NOT process such conversions quickly enough.

Another way is to simply have a friendly broker...and a friendly POH holder for example...fax through to the broker a consent from your best mate, signing over ownership (or an off-market transfer) of your POH shares...and you can sell away, even though they are not, strictly speaking, in your account yet.

The latter, strictly speaking is a naked short, although some will argue it is a covered short.

I suggest many of these daily pump and dump exercises see pre-arranged transfers of stock for this very purpose...in the days leading up to a major announcement for example...with the view to sell (short) said stock into the market. Stock that otherwise could not be shorted. I have to ask, how these people know in advance to arrange such transfers, is a real concern, as it suggests Company involvement.

Not saying this off POH...I suspect something else is up here.

Of course...whilst most brokers will refuse it exists...I have no doubt naked short selling happens all the time. In effect, naked short selling is simply illegal selling of stock that is neither covered, borrowed nor in ones account at the time it is sold...with the view to being bought back later in the day.

When the days trades are reconciled, a series of buy and sell contract notes as are generated...only difference between normal buying then selling in a day can be seen in the time stamps for the account transactions...the sell simply happened before the buy, yet was ?balanced? by the end of the day.

I have a friend who worked the back-office of a "settlements" department...said it was a common occurrence. I have also personally seen, on several occasions, where naked shorting comes unstuck...for example where a stock is put into a trading-halt in the middle of the shorting exercise, thereby preventing the culprits from balancing the books by the end of the day. Amazingly...even though it ?cannot happen?...stock was in fact short a significant amount...on a stock that COULD NOT BE SHORTED. On one such occasion, I was to learn that the ?shorter? tried desperately to cover his position off-market, before settlement...but was unable to because there were no takers. His short position was bought back by the sponsoring broker the very next trading session after the halt, fines and fees were charged, and the broker given a warning.

A ?Warning?? With such huge consequences...I can see why such activity would never happen...lol

Can't be done?

lol...happens every day.


Cheers!