ASIC bans SA planning firm for two years
A South Australian financial planning firm, its directors and a trainee adviser have had their licences cancelled by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
The Adelaide firm, Australian Business Insurance Advisers (ABIA), has also been banned from providing any financial services for two years.
The action by the regulator followed a surveillance visit in November last year, which detected shortcomings with respect to the provision of Statements of Advice
ASIC said it banned ABIA’s directors, Terence Malcolm Franke and his wife, Wendy Franke, for two years and one year respectively after the surveillance visit in November 2005 and a subsequent investigation into the activities of the company.
Following that investigation, ASIC’s delegate found Terence Franke gave financial product advice without providing a Statement of Advice, and, on other occasions, provided Statements of Advice that did not contain information required by law, including, in some cases, information about the remuneration to be paid.
The delegate also found Wendy Franke did not ensure Terence Franke and Craig Maurice Franke acted in conformity with financial services laws and that ABIA complied with its obligations as a licensee.
As a consequence of its investigations, ASIC also banned Franke’s son, Craig Franke, for a period of two years after finding that he was providing financial advice unsupervised and signed the name of another adviser on Statements of Advice in contravention of the Corporations Act.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
Recommended for you
Compared to four years ago when the divide between boutique and large licensees were largely equal, adviser movements have seen this trend shift in light of new licensees commencing.
As ongoing market uncertainty sees advisers look beyond traditional equity exposure, Fidante has found adviser interest in small caps and emerging markets for portfolio returns has almost doubled since April.
CoreData has shared the top areas of demand for cryptocurrency advice but finds investors are seeking advisers who actively invest in the asset themselves.
With regulators ‘raising the bar’ on retirement planning, Lonsec Research and Ratings has urged advisers to place greater focus on sequencing and longevity risk as they navigate clients through the shifting landscape.
