ASIC bans WA adviser for four years
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has banned adviser Anthony Hilsley from providing financial services for four years after failing to comply with financial services law, including failing to provide financial advice in the best interest of his clients.
Hilsley, from Kelmscott in Western Australia, was most recently an authorised representative of Fiducian Financial Services but the ASIC surveillance covered his time when he worked at RI Advice Group which was owned by ANZ.
During the time in question, he did not identify or make sufficient enquiries into his clients’ personal circumstances, properly consider their objectives or, on occasion, consider their existing products when providing advice.
In one case, he recommended replacing superannuation and insurance products without taking the clients’ pre-existing medical condition into consideration.
As a result, a loading was added to the premium, which could have been avoided if Hilsley had considered the suitability of the client’s existing products to meet their ongoing insurance needs.
He has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of the ASIC decision.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
Recommended for you
Government has introduced a bill to Parliament to legislate the first stream of the QAR reforms.
ASIC now has a 1:1 ratio when it comes to court success in the enforcement of crypto activities and more action is expected as Treasury seeks to introduce a regulatory framework.
A leading governance body has hit out at “specialist interest groups proposing ad hoc law reform” when it comes to reforms of financial services legislation and believes an independent body is needed.
The release of ALRC’s final report into financial services legislation has highlighted financial advice as a “significant” focus as it seeks to reduce costs and help advisers understand their obligations, alongside the Quality of Advice Review.
