Manuel P. Asensio

Manuel P. Asensio (born December 30, 1954, in La Habana, Cuba) is the founder, chairman and president of Asensio & Company, LLC an investment firm established in 1992.

Asensio is the recognized pioneer of activist short selling.

He is the author of a book about his short selling work entitled Sold Short: Uncovering the Markets.

Career

While at Harvard, Asensio began proprietary trading, and established Boca Raton Investment Corp. as his own trading firm when he graduated in 1982. He went to work for Bear Stearns in 1986.

In July 2006, the National Adjudicatory Council of the NASD upheld a hearing panel's ruling that barred Asensio "from association with any NASD member in any capacity" and fined him $20,000. The NASD barred Asensio and his firm for failing to respond to requests for information concerning Polymedica. It found that Asensio made statements in research reports that criticized PolyMedica Corp that were "misleading," by stating incorrectly that he was shorting the company when he was not, and by making similar disclosure rule violations. Asensio denied any wrongdoing

As a result of a controversy over Asensio's role in the short selling of Polymedica FINRA imposed a fine and Asensio disbanded his broker-dealer operation. Subsequently, FINRA barred Asensio from membership.

Polymedica filed for bankruptcy in 2013.