Mumbai, April 10: ICICI Bank has been fined Rs 2 lakh (HK$40,000) by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the regulator in Hong Kong, for dealing in securities in that country for about two years without a licence.

Following this, the bank is believed to have terminated the services of two senior management personnel — Arnab Basu, chief executive of its Hong Kong branch, and Abraham Verghese, head of private banking services.

Though the amount of the penalty is small, it is seen as a setback for ICICI Bank, which has been rapidly expanding its international operations over the past few years.

However, this is not the first time that the bank has been pulled up. Last year, the Reserve Bank of India had penalised the bank for its role in the IPO scam.

ICICI Bank has informed stock exchanges that it respects the decision of the Eastern Magistrate’s Court, Hong Kong, regarding the summons issued by the SFC.

The bank was charged with dealing in securities (selling mutual funds and other security products) in Hong Kong between June 15, 2004 and March 8, 2006 without a licence. The bank has also been ordered to reimburse investigation costs to the SFC.