I sent an email to George expressing my concerns about the PM's being read. He has replied and I thought you should hear what he had to say.
"First, I want to be clear the PM problem was not mandated by me and was not a company policy in any way shape or form. I was just as disappointed as you and the others when hearing about it as you were and immediately implemented an air tight policy so it never happens again. Our policy was to never look at PMs unless there was a severe violation reported (threats, profanity and spam).
I can also tell you that I took a look at the PMs that were discussed and they did not involve people like you, Hoov and Irish. It was limited to a handful of people. This does not justify it in ANY way but I thought you should know. Nonetheless, I am very sorry it happened. I feel your pain because I equally felt that same disappointment and anger when it was discovered.
Second, you will note the agreement with OSC does not include the original allegations of fraud and market manipulation from the April 1 allegations. This was very important to me as I was adamant about this from Day 1 when I issued our official response. I took full responsibility, admitted and explained the reason for those posts from Day 1. That explanation remained consistent with the settlement on the basis of conduct "contrary to the public interest", as opposed to something much worse had we been enriching ourselves on the backs of members or our clients.
As a result of everything else that has transpired (from insider trading to PM violations), I have taken and will hold a much tighter reign over everything at Agoracom. I am deeply sorry that I did not do this sooner.
Much of what happened took place as I was out growing the business and left others in charge of respective positions. That won't happen again without air tight policies and an iron fist to back them up.
I look forward to your response and encourage you to share this with the rest of the gang as soon as possible. I apologize again for what has transpired and ask that you give me a chance to demonstrate my commitment to you and all members."
Regards,
George
