The trouble with short sellers
Where short sellers should be called to order is when they pursue a strategy of ‘short and distort’
As the role of social media in investment decision making grows, analysts are questioning why local regulators are not plugged into the medium — especially in the wake of Steinhoff’s collapse and the Viceroy Research report released afterwards. In January, rumours abounded on Twitter that short-selling research house Viceroy was preparing another damning report on either Aspen, the Resilient property group, insurer Discovery or banker Capitec. All of them took a beating on the JSE. In the end, Viceroy was targeting Capitec. One analyst, who asked not to be named, says the market has been skittish since Steinhoff’s collapse. "Public perception via social media and the general media almost seems to have unprecedented influence in our market at present," he says. Meago Asset Management executive director Anas Madhi is amazed at how rumours are being spread on social media. "The potential for fake news and abuse to suit a specific agenda is really high," says Madhi. "The story around Vi...
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