AAT affirms AFS licence cancellation for Mark Power
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has affirmed an Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) decision to cancel the Australian financial services (AFS) licences of Mark Power and Mark Power Financial (MPF) and refused a licence application made by Global Financial Markets (GFM).
The Tribunal stated that the licences should have been cancelled “in order to protect the public” after it found that Power and MPF had failed to comply with their obligations under the Corporations Law on multiple occasions.
According to the Tribunal, there were ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe that Power and MPF would be likely to contravene their obligations in the future and additionally AAT found that Power had engaged in misleading and deceptive conduct.
In 2013 GFM, of which Power was the sole director, applied to ASIC for a new AFS licence but the application was refused in July, 2014.
The Tribunal also said : “Mr Power’s past contraventions whilst operating in the financial services sector were serious indiscretions.
“He was motivated by the pecuniary benefits that flowed to him from appointing authorised representatives, but he was not prepared to honour his obligations with respect to the supervision and monitoring of those representatives from whom he received significant monthly payments.”
Power has 28 days to appeal the decision.
AUTHOR
Oksana Patron
Recommended for you
Sequoia Financial Group has declined by five financial advisers in the past week, four of whom have opened up a new AFSL, according to Wealth Data.
Insignia Financial chief executive Scott Hartley has detailed whether the firm will be selecting an exclusive bidder for the second phase of due diligence as it awaits revised bids from three private equity players.
Insignia Financial has reported a statutory net loss after tax of $17 million in its first half results, although the firm has noted cost optimisation means this is an improvement from a $50 million loss last year.
With alternative funds being described as “impossible” for fund managers to target towards advisers without the support of BDMs for education, Money Management explores the evolving nature of the distribution role.
