Sydney adviser permanently banned for misconduct
A Sydney adviser has been permanently banned from providing financial services by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
ASIC investigations found that Alan Leslie Brown of Lugarno, Sydney south, had not complied with financial services law and that he was unlikely to comply with this law in the future.
Brown was an authorised representative of Bridges Financial Services from June 7, 2007, to May 13, 2008. ASIC stated that, with the assistance of the licensee, it discovered that between July 2002 and July 2008 Brown “carried on a financial services business without holding an Australian financial services licence, engaged in dishonest conduct by transferring funds from clients’ accounts without their knowledge or authority for his own purpose, and engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct in relation to the transfer of funds from clients’ Macquarie Cash Management Trust accounts for his own purpose”.
Brown has the right to apply to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of ASIC’s decision.
Recommended for you
ASIC commissioner Alan Kirkland has detailed the regulator’s intentions to conduct surveillance on licensees and advisers who are recommending managed accounts, noting a review is “warranted and timely” given the sector’s growth.
AMP and HUB24 have shared the areas where they are seeking future adviser growth, with HUB24 targeting adding more than 2,000 advisers to the platform.
Bravura Solutions has appointed a new chair and deputy chair to take over from departing Matthew Quinn, while Shezad Okhai picks up another responsibility.
Two advisers say M&A is becoming a “contact sport” as competition heats up to acquire attractive advice firms, while a lack of new entrants creates roadblocks in organic growth opportunities.
