The former director of a group of companies trading under a variety of names, including Sydney Investment House Equities, has been found guilty of breaching his duties as a director including misappropriating $4.2 million in company funds.
The man, Edwin Goulding, was found guilty in the NSW Supreme Court on charges brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission alleging that he had breached his duties by allowing companies to make intercompany loans to insolvent entities, providing false or misleading statements to investors and operating an unregistered managed investment scheme.
ASIC alleged that Goulding and fellow director Stephen Geagea and the eight companies with the Sydney Investment House Group were involved in a number of contraventions of the Corporations and ASIC Acts, including the operation of a financial services business without a licence.
The regulator said it had settled its proceedings against Geagea in May when he was banned by the Supreme Court from providing financial product advice for five years and managing corporations until December 31, 2011.
The court will hear submissions relating to Goulding in February next year, to determine what orders should be made as a consequence of its findings.
