A Tasmanian-based company and its director have been banned from providing financial product advice for 10 years after they were found guilty of engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct in relation to financial services, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced yesterday.
The Melbourne branch of the Federal Court of Australia made orders restraining the company, Oxford Investments Tasmania, and its director, Stephen Nigel Moore of North Hobart, from engaging in any business of providing financial advice for the next 10 years, ASIC said.
The ban includes giving opinions regarding the trading of securities and derivatives, recommendations on strategies for trading in securities and derivatives and opinions regarding price or trading signals discernible from historical trading data.
The court also found that between January 2004 and March 2006 Oxford Investments and Moore provided financial product advice without holding the necessary Australian Financial Services licence.
“The court has found that the business conducted by Oxford Investments and Mr Moore constituted the provision of financial product advice and that some of the people who received and paid for this advice were misled,” ASIC executive director of enforcement Jan Redfern said.
ASIC noted that investors who attended the training courses and would like to apply for compensation under the ASIC Act 2001 could rely on the court’s decision to assist their application.
