The B.C. Securities Commission alleges Surge Battery Metals board chair Graham Leslie Harris sold 459,600 shares through family accounts during a trading blackout.
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The B.C. Securities Commission has alleged that a veteran Vancouver stockbroker and mining-company promoter carried out illegal insider trading involving shares of Surge Battery Metals Inc.
In a hearing notice issued Tuesday, the commission alleged that Graham Leslie Harris, chair of the board of directors for the West Vancouver-based junior mineral exploration company Surge Battery Metals Inc. (TSXV: NILI), sold 459,600 company shares through accounts belonging to family members, generating $460,564.
The commission’s notice describes that on Sept. 4, 2023, Surge’s head geologist emailed Harris and others with positive preliminary results from a drill hole at one of the company’s exploration sites.
The notice says Harris then emailed Surge’s corporate secretary, advising that the company was in receipt of material information and asking the secretary to issue a company blackout to all directors and employees.
According to the commission, Harris began selling shares held in family-member accounts the following day, before the company publicly released details of the drill results on Sept. 12, 2023, at which point the blackout was lifted.
The commission said the notice reflects its view that “By trading shares of Surge while in possession of material information that had not been generally disclosed, Harris engaged in insider trading contrary to the [B.C. Securities Act].”
The commission said it expects to hear back from Harris and set a hearing date by Dec. 15.
It also noted that the allegations are unproven before a commission tribunal and that Harris has not responded to the allegations.
The hearing notice states Surge has no revenue stream and that the company completed a $36 million private placement on June 24, involving 600,000 shares priced at 60 cents each.
According to the company’s last second-quarter financial statements referenced in the notice, as of June 30 Surge had $49.6 million in cash and accumulated losses of $58.7 million since inception.
Surge is currently exploring two sites in the United States, according to the notice.
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