The third individual charged in relation to Courtenay House group of companies has pled guilty to two criminal charges.
David Sipina of Croydon, NSW, appeared before the Downing Centre Local Court in Sydney on 19 March and pleaded guilty to:
- One count of carrying on an unlicensed financial services business between 24 June 2015 and 21 April 2017, including referring new investors and marketing the business. It is not alleged he knew the business was a Ponzi scheme.
- One count of dealing with money which was, and he believed to be, the proceeds of crime worth $1 million or more in the form of commission he received for promoting investments in the Courtenay House despite it being unlicensed.
A related charge of engaging in dishonest conduct in relation to a financial product or service was withdrawn, following Sipina pleading guilty to the other charges for which he is to be sentenced.
Sipina was first charged with criminal offences relating to alleged misconduct in February 2023.
The Courtenay House group offered returns to investors based on representations that their funds would be traded in the forex and futures markets.
ASIC alleged that approximately 585 investors contributed over $180 million to the scheme, but only a fraction of the funds were actually traded. Instead, the majority of new investor funds were used to repay earlier investors, a fraudulent arrangement known as a Ponzi scheme.
Sipina has been committed to Sydney District Court for sentencing, and his first appearance will be on 19 April 2024.
Former Courtenay House director Tony Iervasi pled guilty in November 2022 to conducting a $180 million Ponzi scheme, and is awaiting sentencing next month in the Supreme Court of NSW.
Additionally, former Courtenay House contractor Athan Papoulias pled guilty in January 2023 to one charge of carrying on a financial services business, reckless about the fact that it did not have the required licence and one charge of dealing in the proceeds of crime worth $100,000 or more, reckless to it being the proceeds of crime.
He was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment, to be served by way of an intensive corrections order for his role in the unlicensed financial services business.
