ASIC takes Advanced Wealth Financial to court



The Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) has taken court action against Richard Gardner, a former financial adviser, and Advanced Wealth Financial Services for providing financial services with no licence.
According to the regulator, Gardner provided recommendations to his clients to establish a self-managed superannuation fund (SMSF) in order to buy newly constructed investment properties.
He also recommended specific properties for development as well as specific developers or builders to construct those investment properties.
At the same time, Gardner was said to have received substantial commissions from the builders and developers, ASIC said.
Advanced Wealth Financial was not licenced to provide financial services, but only credit services.
The matter would be heard in the Supreme Court in Brisbane in February while ASIC would continue its investigation.
Recommended for you
With a large group of advisers expecting to exit before the 2026 education deadline, an industry expert shares how these practices can best prepare themselves for sale to compete in a “buyer’s market”.
Australia has marked a decade among the best countries for retirement, according to Natixis, but with high inflation threatening their retirement goals, a third say they would get professional advice to improve their chances.
When it comes to the risks of acting as a responsible manager at an AFSL, compliance firm Holley Nethercote has shared a range of red flags that could see them facing disciplinary action from the corporate regulator.
Wealth management platform provider Netwealth has announced a partnership with FinClear to streamline trading capabilities for advisers.