News Release

Vancouver – A British Columbia Securities Commission panel has found that a man engaged in illegal insider trading and made false and misleading statements to commission staff.

The panel found that Michael Kyaw Myint Hua Hu, while a director and chairman of Maple Leaf Reforestation Inc., bought shares in the company while knowing undisclosed material information about a biodiesel project (known as the Xinjiang project) that Maple Leaf was negotiating in China.

The panel found that Hu was aware of material information about the project on September 24, 2007. The material information was not generally disclosed until October 16, 2007.

The panel found that between September 24, 2007 and October 12, 2007, Hu purchased 847,800 shares of Maple Leaf through an online brokerage account held by another individual.

The panel also found that Hu made false and misleading statements to commission staff when he denied knowing the individual who held the online brokerage account.

The panel directed the parties to make submissions on sanctions according to the schedule set out in the findings.

The B.C. Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating trading in securities within the province. You may view the decision on our website, www.bcsc.bc.ca, by typing Michael Kyaw Myint Hua Hu or 2011 BCSECCOM 355 in the search box.  Information regarding disciplinary proceedings can be found in the Enforcement section of the BCSC website.

Please visit the Canadian Securities Administrators’ Disciplined Persons List for information relating to persons disciplined by provincial securities regulators, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA).

If you have questions, contact Richard Gilhooley, media relations, 604-899-6713. For public inquiries, call 604 899 6854 or 1 800 373 6393 (toll free).

Learn how to protect yourself and become a more informed investor at www.investright.org