A former Westpoint adviser has been convicted in the New South Wales District Court for providing financial advice without the required Australian financial services licence (AFSL).
Keith Jason Rowntree of Kellyville in NSW last year pleaded guilty to the charge of providing financial advice without holding the requisite AFSL, as obligatory under the Corporations Act.
The charge against Rowntree was put forward by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) following the Commission’s broader investigation into the collapse of the Westpoint Group.
ASIC alleged Rowntree provided financial advice to clients investing in Westpoint products while he was carrying on a financial services business, Solutions One Finance Group, in North Sydney.
Rowntree was ordered to undertake 80 hours of community service and has been automatically disqualified from managing a corporation for five years. Companies for which Rowntree was director have been deregistered.
