ASIC busts super firm
A Queensland-based superannuation fund company and its director faced the Brisbane Supreme Court yesterday on misconduct allegations brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
Instep Superannuation and Leslie John Donnell of Mount Coolum, Queensland, allegedly arranged advertisements for television, radio and online offering returns on the investment of superannuation funds of between 8 per cent and 20 per cent. The advertisements also claimed Instep Super was “the best performing superannuation fund in Australia”.
ASIC alleged that neither Donnell nor Instep Super was licensed to provide financial products or offer advice, nor did either have qualifications or experience in the super industry. It also found that the Product Disclosure Statement on the Instep Super website was plagiarised from other reputable super providers’ websites.
ASIC determined that Instep Super did not receive super funds from any member of the public.
The court made a final order that Instep Super and Donnell be permanently restrained from advertising or promoting the business without a licence.
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