THE United Kingdom ban on short-selling of shares of financial services providers should be extended to other industries, according to David Fischel, chief executive officer of property company Liberty International Plc.

The Financial Services Authority introduced the four-month ban on 34 banks, insurers and asset managers last week, Bloomberg News reported.

The UK market regulator said short-selling positions of more than 0.25 percent shares in such firms must be disclosed.

"Some companies are being protected and others are not," Fischel said on Thursday.

The rules "should apply for everybody," said the head of London-based Liberty, the UK's largest owner of shopping centers.

The measures, also adopted by United States and Irish regulators, were introduced after politicians and some investors blamed short-sellers for a 37-percent plunge in HBOS Plc's market value before it agreed to a takeover by Lloyds TSB Group Plc.

About 50 million shares, or 15 percent, of Liberty's shares are on loan, "presumably for short-selling," according to Fischel.

Increased transparency on short-selling would "remove the mystery" surrounding such trades, he said. Fischel said he was not opposed to short-selling in principle.

Short-sellers try to profit from falling prices, borrowing stock in the hope of replacing it later at a lower price. While real estate investment trusts and other property companies were "more exposed than other sectors" to short-selling, Fischel said he was not asking for special treatment.

The number of Liberty shares on loan compares with 8.3 percent of British Land Co Plc, according to estimates by research firm Data Explorers. Land Securities Group Plc estimates about 3 percent of its shares are on loan.

Liberty shares have dropped by 10 percent in London trading this year while the FTSE All-Share Real Estate Index has fallen 18 percent. The company has a market value of about 3.4 billion pounds (US$6.3 billion).