Embattled ASX forced to reverse $400m TPG share price plunge after mix-up

Embattled market operator ASX has been forced to reverse over $400 million in wrongly traded TPG Telecom shares after incorrectly tagging the telco in software firm Infomedia’s takeover deal with private equity firm TPG Capital.

Infomedia, which is listed on the ASX, announced on Wednesday it had agreed to be acquired by TPG Capital for $651 million.

This announcement was released under Infomedia’s ticker code, IFM, and that of TPG Telecom’s, TPG. TPG Telecom is unrelated to TPG Capital, which is not publicly listed.

The Infomedia announcement didn’t help with the confusion either, referring to TPG Capital as “TPG” in the first instance.

The mix-up by ASX wiped $437 million off the market capitalisation of TPG Telecom, which saw its share price fall 4.3 per cent to $5.27 at the open before entering a pause in trading.

“This morning, the ASX made a serious error by incorrectly cross-referencing TPG Telecom’s share ticker in a price-sensitive announcement completely unrelated to us,” a TPG Telecom spokesman said in a statement.

“That unrelated announcement caused confusion among investors resulting in a sharp drop in our share price.

“While we welcome the ASX’s decision to cancel trades made during this window, we expect a full explanation of how the error occurred and what steps will be taken to prevent similar incidents in future.”

The ASX cancelled trades in TPG Telecom’s shares before the pause. The company’s shares resumed trading at 12.26pm AEST.

Shares finished 5.1 per cent lower at $5.22. Meanwhile, shares in Infomedia surged 27 per cent to close at $1.68.

ASX markets and listings group executive Darren Yip blamed “inadvertent human error” for the mix-up.

“This mistake shouldn’t have happened and we are reviewing our internal processes to understand if there are additional safeguards or procedures we could implement to reduce the risk of a similar reoccurrence,” Mr Yip said.

The ASX said it contacted all market participants affected by the cancellation prior to resuming trade on TPG Telecom shares.

The ticker code error comes a day after TPG Telecom announced it would hand back $3 billion to investors after the sale of infrastructure assets.

It also marks the latest in a string of problems facing ASX, which is facing an inquiry into its organisational structure and board governance.

The investigation, launched by the corporate watchdog in June, will examine a series of technology failures at the ASX, primarily related to its troubled upgrade of the CHESS settlement system, which manages the settlement of share transactions and records shareholdings.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Reserve Bank voiced deep concerns in December 2024 when the system failed to complete a settlement run.