The Victims of Financial Fraud (VOFF) has called on the corporate watchdog for an apology for turning a blind eye to helping 1,000 Australians who were victims of Trio Capital while the chair, James Shipton, had “submerged his own head in the trough allegedly at taxpayer expense”.
In two letters to Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, Penny Wong, VOFF secretary, John Telford, said the VOFF was “angry” because Shipton and deputy chair, Daniel Crennan had “turned their backs on genuine victims of financial crime”.
The letters were sent in light of the investigation surrounding Shipton and Crennan’s expenses which has seen Shipton step aside from his role and Crennan resigning on Monday.
“At no time during the ordeal surrounding the investigation into the Trio fraud did ASIC help the 1,000 victims that were not part of the Australian Prudential and Regulation Authority (APRA)-supervised funds that were covered by Part 23 of the SIS Act. ASIC’s unwillingness to help caused more harm than if there was no ASIC agent altogether,” the letter said.
“Victims of financial crime in Australia deserve an apology. Victims of financial crime in Australia with outstanding unresolved issues need to be taken seriously and an urgent inquiry into what can be done must be carried out.”
In a second letter, also addressed to Wong, VOFF pointed to an aide memoire document from 2015 that had circulated within government and held by treasury was “damming of ASIC”. VOFF alleged the then Assistant Treasurer, Kelly O’Dwyer, had failed to inform the public of the document.
“The aide memoire document was damning of ASIC and the FSAC [Financial Sector Advisory Council] recommended reform for ASIC, APRA and the Reserve Bank,” the letter said.
“…Why are victims of financial crime able to perceive the Treasury Department as an agent that is protecting the failures by the financial regulators and allowing ordinary Australian to suffer the consequences?
“What other known and foreseeable dangers are lurking that may potential harm consumers? What else is the Treasury Department keeping secret? What else is it not prepared to disclose an accurate account about?”
