A Melbourne-based financial adviser who advised clients to invest in two investment schemes that have since been closed down by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has been banned for seven years.
The corporate regulator stated that on 25 August it banned Jovan Videkanic from providing financial services, controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business or performing any function involved in the carrying on of such a business.
ASIC added it took the actions after it found Videkanic gave inappropriate advice to certain clients that was not in their best interests between July 2020 and February 2024 to set-up an SMSF, roll over their existing superannuation into that fund and invest a large portion into the Global Capital Property Fund (GCPF).
He gave this advice while working for related advice firm United Global Capital (UGC), where he was authorised from July 2020 to February 2022.
Additionally, he also told clients to invest most of their super into the high-growth or growth class of the Shield Master Fund when he was authorised by MWL Financial Services from 7 February 2002 onwards and was also a member of the advice firm’s investment committee.
The investments in the GCPF and Shield were high-risk investments, according to ASIC, which added Videkanic’s statements of advice to clients contained false and misleading statements, stating they would receive higher returns by investing their super into Shield, and the fund had a better performance track record against other super funds when it had only been in existence for a short time.
As such, ASIC stated Videkanic is not a fit and proper person, is not competent and is likely to contravene a financial services law, and imposed the ban, which has been recorded on its Banned and Disqualified Register.
On 26 August, he lodged an application with the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) for a review of ASIC’s decision, a stay of the ban and confidentiality orders pending the outcome of the review.
On 17 October, he withdrew the application for a stay and confidentiality orders, but the review application before ART remains ongoing.
Videkanic’s ban follows that of Wade Lance Spooner, who was banned in late July and has also appealed that action, and makes him the eighth person linked to MWL to be banned since late July when former advisers of the group Rocco D’Amelio and Robert Crossing were banned for seven years and six years respectively.
In July, two more advisers – Matthew Simon Bradley and Isaac Jacob McQueen – were banned for eight and four years respectively.
In August, ASIC cancelled MWL’s Australian financial services licence and banned director Nicholas Maikousis for 10 years and also banned responsible manager and compliance manager Robert John Tohill for five years.
UGC has also been the subject of ASIC action with the GCPF being wound up on court orders obtained by the regulator and its licence cancelled, while UGC director James Hewish was banned for 10 years.
