The president and director of brokerage firm Pollitt & Co. has been banned from working as a trading officer for 30 days for breaking industry rules by giving a “heads up” on a “bought deal” to certain clients in advance of a news release.

Murray Pollitt agreed to the ban as part of a settlement approved yesterday at an Ontario Securities Commission hearing.

The case dates back to November, 2002, when a group of brokerage firms raised $100 million for United Grain Growers Ltd. through the sale of convertible debentures.

According to the settlement negotiated with OSC staff and accepted by a hearing panel yesterday, Pollitt contacted some of the firm’s institutional clients to notify them about the financing before United issued a news release. Pollitt & Co. was part of the underwriting group led by Scotia Capital Inc.

Pollitt acknowledged that he violated rules banning pre-marketing of bought deals by contacting his clients, the settlement says. “He is remorseful for his conduct and acknowledges that it was unbecoming of a [trading officer].”

However, the settlement notes it was not Pollitt’s intention to derive any benefit for himself or the firm by contacting his clients.

Pollitt & Co. has also agreed to pay $27,000 toward the OSC’s investigation costs and to retain a consulting firm to review its practices and procedures to ensure that its compliance staff and trading officers are properly trained.

In a separate settlement reached with the OSC yesterday, Cassels Investment Management Inc. head Robert Cassels, one of the clients Pollitt contacted, has also been suspended for 30 days for selling shares of United, which operates as Agricore United, with information not disclosed to the public.