Sydney adviser gets three-year ban
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has banned a Sydney financial adviser and former representative of Brisbane-based Protect Ensure from providing financial services for three years.
It came after an investigation into Keira Jane Keegan's conduct in recommending self-managed superannuation fund clients invest in financial products issued by Protect Ensure.
While working for Protect Ensure's Sydney office as a representative between November 2013 and December 2014, ASIC found Keegan had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct.
When recommending Protect Ensure products to clients, Keegan misled them into believing that the investments were a conservative and low risk option, similar to a term deposit, and that client funds would be pooled to attract a high interest rate.
ASIC also found the products recommended by Keegan were in fact unsecured and represented a high risk investment.
As a result, partly due to Keegan's conduct, clients' funds were inappropriately used, such as to pay Protect Ensure's business related expenses, due to which some investors lost their invested funds entirely.
ASIC cancelled the Australian financial services licence of Protect Ensure as it did not have adequate financial resources to provide the services covered by the licence and to carry out supervisory arrangements as required by the Corporations Act.
ASIC has also previously banned Protect Ensure's Lee Robert Robin and George Karakatsanis of Queensland.
AUTHOR
Malavika Santhebennur
Recommended for you
ASIC has launched court proceedings against the responsible entity of three managed investment schemes with around 600 retail investors.
There is a gap in the market for Australian advisers to help individuals with succession planning as the country has been noted by Capital Group for being overly “hands off” around inheritances.
ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of an advice firm associated with Shield and First Guardian collapses, and permanently banned its responsible manager.
Having peaked at more than 40 per cent growth since the first M&A bid, Insignia Financial shares have returned to earth six months later as the company awaits a final decision from CC Capital.
