Ex-adviser charged with 18 dishonesty counts
Former financial adviser Gavin Fineff was arrested on 7 May and charged with 18 counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception and one count of knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime with the intent to conceal.
Money Management reported on Wednesday that a Sydney adviser had allegedly defrauded multiple clients of $3.3 million.
Reports from the Sydney Morning Herald said court documents said it was Fineff who took funds from 12 people which were meant for shares holdings and diverted them to his own bank account from May 2017 to March 2020.
The SMH said Fineff spoke to reporters on Monday and said he had never been in trouble before.
“Yet here I am a couple of weeks ago in a police station for 11 hours, in a cell for a few hours and talking about the things that I did and being as honest as I can,” he said.
“I’ve impacted my kids, my family. I’ve lost my career, but it kind of all means nothing for these people that are just sitting there without their money.
“I lost my money. Then I asked for money from my mum and I lost her money. How can I do that to the hero of my life?
“I wake up and I can’t get back to sleep, the shame and the guilt is sickening ... these people are my friends, my family, people that I love and care for.”
Fineff’s matter was heard before Hornsby Local Court on Wednesday where his bail conditions remained unchanged. His matter will return on 21 July.
Recommended for you
Financial advisers and wealth managers need to exceed their clients’ desires for personalisation, a new EY report writes, and the requirements for this will vary between client segments.
Betashares chief executive, Alex Vynokur, believes technology advancements will enable banks to return to financial advice in the future as the need for advice is greater than ever.
Centrepoint Alliance has upgraded its expected financial results for FY24, thanks to strong adviser recruitment and the acquisition of Queensland advice firm Financial Advice Matters.
The corporate regulator has permanently banned a Melbourne-based financial adviser that “dishonestly attempted to induce clients to transfer their superannuation into a bank account he controlled”.
