2 Resign Amid Mexico Stock Market Furor

The director of the Mexico Stock Exchange and its operations chief, who has been in a coma since attempting suicide, have resigned after the disappearance of $7 million through what exchange officials have called “administrative irrregularities.”

The stock exchange, which announced the resignations Wednesday, has issued statements reassuring investors and rejecting persistent suggestions of fraud.

The exchange’s governing council accepted the resignations of director-general Mario Segura Quiroz and operations director Reynaldo Hernandez Balsaldua at a special meeting Tuesday night, it was announced.

The government newspaper El Nacional said Hernandez has been in a coma since shooting himself on May 13 at the exchange. It did not explain how he tendered his resignation.

Stock exchange President Alfredo Harp Helu issued a statement saying an internal inquiry will be continued. Officials say the shortage could reach about $8.5 million.

Drastic Skid

Harp Helu pegged the missing money to a single account but said that “unfortunately, the personal events affecting the director of operations have blocked a precise understanding of the problem.”

The council appointed Guillermo Nunez the interim director and increased the dues of exchange members to finance the reorganization. Details of the restructuring were not announced.

The Mexican stock exchange was one of the world’s hottest markets last year but went into a drastic skid after the worldwide fall in October. Exchange officials have been struggling to restore confidence in the market since.

As rumors about the missing money grew, nervous stock exchange officials insisted that the shortage had not affected investors.