ASIC has banned a financial services director for 10 years and cancelled the Australian financial services (AFS) licence of his company after he recommended clients invest in speculative investments and rollover their superannuation.
Joel James Hewish has been banned for 10 years from providing financial services, performing any function involved in carrying on of a financial services business, and controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business.
ASIC also cancelled the AFS licence of his company, United Global Capital Pty Ltd (UGC). UGC operated as an Australian financial services business based in Melbourne from 18 August 2017 and was placed in administration on 5 July 2024.
Hewish became a director of UGC on 8 November 2011 and had been the key person on the licence since 18 August 2017.
ASIC found that UGC’s authorised representatives contacted prospective clients and recommended they establish a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF), rollover their existing superannuation into the SMSF, and invest it in highly speculative investments related to Hewish.
UGC’s AFS licence was cancelled based on ASIC’s findings that UGC:
- Used a client onboarding process that lured people into investing their retirement savings in UGC-related products by having calls made to prospective clients using details including those obtained from a third-party website operator, offering them a free superannuation “health check”.
- Through its authorised representatives, recommended investments to clients that included speculative investments in Global Capital Property Fund Limited in which Hewish had an interest.
- Attempted to contract out of its personal advice obligations whereas its representatives did give personal advice to clients in breach of those obligations, including by failing to act in clients’ best interests and giving them inappropriate advice.
- Contravened a number of its general obligations as an AFS licensee, including the obligation to do all things necessary to ensure the financial services authorised under its licence are provided efficiently, honestly and fairly; the obligation to take reasonable steps to ensure its representatives comply with financial services laws; and the obligation to have adequate arrangements in place to manage conflicts of interest.
Although UGC’s licence is cancelled, ASIC has specified the licence still has effect for limited purposes, including that UGC continues to be an AFCA member until May 2025, and it continues to have insurance cover for clients.
ASIC banned Hewish having found that he:
- Was involved in UGC’s conduct as its responsible manager and key person under the licence.
- Demonstrated a fundamental lack of competence, and a cavalier attitude to his management of UGC and the importance of complying with financial services laws.
- Created a culture of non-compliance and incompetence at UGC.
- Cannot be trusted to comply with financial services laws.
Hewish and UGC have appealed to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of ASIC’s decision.
ASIC’s order cancelling UGC’s licence and banning Hewish was served on 3 June 2024, but ASIC said it was unable to publish its decision until now due to interim orders restricting publication obtained by UGC and Hewish in the AAT, but these were lifted by the AAT on 25 July 2024.
The banning is now recorded on ASIC’s banned and disqualified register.
ASIC’s investigation into the conduct of UGC, Hewish and related entities is continuing.
A 10 year ban is not enough! This lovely person has made millions and placed it into structures or in the names of his partner and or kids so a 10 year ban is a 10 year fully paid first class holiday at the expense of good advisers doing the right thing. How about we teach people like this (and there are more than this guy) a lesson with a 10 year jail term. That sounds a bit more reasonable.
Agree. Moreover these sort of abusers bring shame on the financial advice industry and its members.