Bulgaria's Financial Supervision Commission is to carry out inspections on spreading rumors, false and misleading news, the press office of the commission announced, Friday.

The Commission conducts checks of multiple persons and media that have made statements and comments regarding the public companies First Investment Bank, Corporate Commercial Bank (KTB) and Bulgartabac in the last few weeks in various media.

Currently, the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) is establishing the range of all persons whose statements can be regarded as misleading and creating a false or misleading representation of the financial position of companies traded on the Bulgarian stock Exchange – Sofia, the official press release reads.

In compliance with the Law on Measures against Market Abuse with Financial Instruments, fines for market manipulation, dissemination of rumors and false or misleading news range from BGN 20,000 to BGN 50,000 for individuals if the act does not constitute a crime, and BGN 50,000 to BGN 100,000 for legal persons.

The Financial Supervision Commission urges all media "to show responsible behavior and to stop the dissemination of opinions, as well as user comments below materials relating to public companies that could create false or misleading representation of the financial instruments, including the dissemination of rumors and false or misleading news.”

FSC will be “uncompromising” and will approach the prosecution in case of criminal acts against the financial system.