POWERED BY MOMENTUM MEDIA
AAT decision puts past offenders on notice
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has upheld a decision from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to refuse Superannuation Warehouse Australia’s (SWA’s) application for a limited Australian financial services licence (AFSL), after its director failed to disclose past offences.
The AAT based the finding on SWA’s sole director and nominated responsible manager, Johann Heinrich Preller, failing to:
- Demonstrate an adequate understanding of the general obligations that would apply to a licensee; and
- Disclose matters that the AAT considered materially relevant, including telling ASIC of past breaches of other laws.
In the decision, the AAT considered information referred to ASIC by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) about the audits of self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs) completed by Preller. While this information was provided to ASIC after the hearing had closed, the AAT agreed with ASIC that it was relevant to the licence decision and so should be considered.
“These decisions reinforce the importance of providing full and frank disclosures to ASIC and the weight placed on an applicant’s past conduct in financial services or under other legislation in determining a licence application,” ASIC executive director of assessment and intelligence, Warren Day, said of the decision.
“Applicants, and anyone else involved in preparing and lodging applications with ASIC, are on notice that a failure to disclose all relevant information runs the risk of the application being refused.”
Recommended for you
A member body representing some prominent wealth managers is concerned super funds’ dominance is sidelining small companies in capital markets.
Earlier this month, several Australian superannuation funds fell victim to credential stuffing attacks, which saw a small number of members lose more than $500,000.
Small- to medium-sized funds have become collateral damage in an "imperfect" model for super industry levies, a financial institution has said.
Big business has joined the chorus of opposition against the proposed Division 296 tax.
TOP PERFORMING FUNDS
ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
1
DomaCom DFS Mortgage
93.34 3 y p.a(%)
2
Global X GlobalX FANG+ ETF
37.15 3 y p.a(%)
3
GAM LSA Private Shares AU I
33.96 3 y p.a(%)
4
Fidante Credit Suisse Global Private Equity
29.68 3 y p.a(%)
5
Plato Global Alpha A
28.73 3 y p.a(%)
