AAT upholds ASIC ban of client adviser
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) has affirmed the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) to ban Mark Menzies from providing financial services, after he had engaged in manipulation of the price of MINI Warrants commonly known as “MINIs”.
He was the sole director and officer of Menzies Securities Pty Ltd and was banned for a period of four years, until 28 January 2022, in its decision the AAT determined the ban be varied to expire on 31 December 2020.
ASIC’s decision to ban Menzies followed an investigation that found he had engaged in manipulation of the price of MINI warrants issues by Credit Suisse, a derivative product traded on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). This was through engaging in pre-arranged trades for the sole or dominant purpose of transferring a profit or loss from previous transactions.
A MINI is a type of derivative that derives its value from another ‘thing’ which is commonly referred to as the ‘underlying instrument’. The underlying instrument of a MINI may be a share, a share price index, a pair of currencies or a commodity.
The AAT found Menzies had contravened s.1041A of the Corporations Act 2001 and noted: “for the holder of an Australian Financial Services licence to be involved in a breach of s.1041A of the Act, conduct which involved market manipulation, is very serious, and such as to merit a banning order in both the public interest and in order to deter others from embarking upon such activity, and also to encourage confidence in the market and its operators.”
AUTHOR
Chris Dastoor
Recommended for you
ASIC has released the results of its first adviser exam to be held in 2025, with 241 candidates attempting the test.
Quarterly Wealth Data analysis has uncovered positive improvements in financial adviser numbers compared with losses in the prior corresponding period.
Holding portfolios that are too complex or personalised can be a detractor for acquirers of financial advice firms as they require too much effort to maintain post-acquisition.
As the financial advice profession continues to wait on further DBFO legislation, industry commentators have encouraged advisers to act now in driving practice efficiency.
