The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has permanently banned an Australian Capital Territory-based financial adviser, who provided inappropriate advice on the establishment of an SMSF, from providing financial services.
The corporate regulator banned Jane Myers following an ASIC investigation of her time as an authorised representative of Spectrum Wealth Advisers Pty Ltd between October 2013 and March 2017. The investigation revealed she had given her clients financial product advice regarding the establishment of their SMSF that was not in their best interests.
ASIC stated Myers had failed to identify her clients’ relevant circumstances and investigate whether the SMSF would achieve the clients’ financial objectives beyond their desire to purchase property. She had also failed to reasonably inform her clients of all associated costs of holding a property within an SMSF and provide her clients with statements of advice, it added.
“ASIC found Ms Myers is not adequately trained or competent to provide financial services and that she is likely to contravene a financial services law in the future. Her conduct demonstrated serious incompetence and irresponsibility,” it said.
It noted she had, on one occasion, advised a client to roll over their existing life insurance to a newly established SMSF, which resulted in the client losing their life insurance cover. Subsequently, the client’s spouse had not received the insurance payout.
“ASIC expects financial advisers to understand and comply with their obligations under the law. When providing personal advice, advisers are required to act in the best interests of their clients, not simply implement their clients’ instructions,” ASIC noted.
“Setting up an SMSF is a significant financial step for consumers and impacts their retirement savings. Advisers must take their clients’ personal circumstances and objectives into account before making recommendations or assisting clients with the establishment of SMSFs.”
Earlier this month, ASIC permanently banned a former Adelaide SMSF adviser from having any involvement in financial services and credit activities after he was sentenced to 10 year’s imprisonment for fraud offences.
Earlier this year, it permanently banned a Sydney-based financial adviser and cancelled her Australian financial services licence after she was found to be misappropriating funds from her clients’ SMSFs.
