Mormon Church fined over claim it hid $32bn of investments

The Mormon Church, officially known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), and its investment firm will pay out $5m (£4.1m) over claims they hid a huge cache of shares.

The LDS and its investment firm, Ensign Peak Advisers, used "shell" companies to hide a $32bn stock portfolio, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said.

Ensign Peak will pay a $4m penalty and the Church will pay $1m.

Neither has admitted any wrongdoing.

"We allege that the LDS church's investment manager, with the church's knowledge, went to great lengths to avoid disclosing the church's investments, depriving the commission and the investing public of accurate market information," Gurbir Grewal, director of the SEC's division of enforcement, said in a statement. read more