MANILA, Philippines - A president of a brokerage firm was found guilty of fraudulent trading and was penalized P2.1 million by the Regional Trial Court of Makati.

Francisco O. Borromeo, president of the defunct brokerage house Asian Capital Equities Inc., was handed the verdict on March 19 after he changed his plea of not guilty, the Philippine Stock Exchange said in a statement on Tuesday.

The PSE said Borromeo was found guilty of various "unlawful and felonious acts" including the sale of his client's shares of stocks without consent, the use of dummy accounts in buying transactions, and the failure to pay proceeds from his customers' sales of shares.

"I understand that this is the first criminal conviction under the Securities Regulation Code which is one of the reasons why the PSE has been following this case closely. The outcome of this case shows that white collar crimes are punished in this country," Hans B. Sicat, president and chief executive officer of the PSE, said in the statement.

Charges against Borromeo were filed in January 2005. He went into hiding after arrest warrants were issued against him. He was arraigned in August 2007, during which he initially pleaded not guilty.

Asian Capital Equities was closed in 2003 and its assets were liquidated in 2008 to settle liabilities to its clients.