A former financial adviser at Infocus Securities Australia has accepted an enforceable undertaking from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
A former financial adviser at Infocus Securities Australia has accepted an enforceable undertaking from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Danielle Russell worked at Infocus Securities between July 2006 and November 2008 and ASIC alleges that she didn't make reasonable inquiries into the financial position of clients and she failed to give proper consideration to the information she provided them.
Under the enforceable undertaking, Ms Russell has to complete professional education with ASCIC within 18 months and be supervised by a senior financial adviser.
See statement from ASIC below:
ASIC has accepted an enforceable undertaking (EU) from former financial adviser Ms Danielle Marie Russell of Sorrento, Western Australia.
Ms Russell was an authorised representative of Infocus Securities Australia Pty Ltd (Infocus) in Northbridge, Western Australia between 31 July 2006 and 26 November 2008.
ASIC's investigation revealed that during this period Ms Russell:failed to make an adequate determination of and make reasonable inquiries into the relevant personal circumstances of clients who she made recommendations to regarding financial products; failed to give proper regard to information she obtained from clients and give proper consideration to her recommendations, including:
- recommending to low income earning clients not requiring a taxation effective investment to invest in managed investment agribusiness schemes;
- recommending to retail clients that they invest in a significant proportion of higher risk financial products (which in some cases was in breach of the Infocus policy regarding investment portfolio weighting);
- recommending to retail clients that they acquire financial products by gearing, such as through the establishment of margin lending accounts in circumstances where no adequate cash flow analysis was carried out to assess the ability to service such loans;
- failing to actively monitor the investment portfolios of her clients on an ongoing basis; and undertaking transactions within client's investment portfolios by switching holdings in shares to cash without first obtaining client authority.
Ms Russell has undertaken to:
complete continuing professional education specified by ASIC within 18 months; and upon becoming employed in the financial services industry, enter into a supervision arrangement with a senior financial planner employed by her AFSL holder to undertake quarterly reviews of the financial services provided by her to retail clients for 12 months.
