ASIC makes first AFSL action of FY24–25
ASIC has suspended the Australian financial services licence (AFSL) of a Sydney firm, the first in the new financial year.
The corporate regulator suspended the AFSL of HLK Group for a period of six months until 27 December 2024.
This was because the firm, which has held the AFSL since 31 May 2013, has ceased carrying on a financial services business.
“The AFS licence authorised HLK Group to provide financial product advice to, and deal in various financial products for, retail and wholesale clients. Currently HLK Group has no retail or wholesale clients,” ASIC said in a statement.
Sydney firms have been particularly prevalent this year when it comes to AFSL action, with seven firms in the NSW city seeing action taken against them.
This includes Indie Advice in January, Brava Capital in February, Suetonius Wealth Management and Crown Wealth in March, Aussie Wealth Super, Sug Ou Jeung and Ascot Securities in June.
Click here to read Money Management’s round-up of ASIC actions against financial advisers during the last financial year.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
Recommended for you
With regional and rural suburbs exhibiting high spare capacity to invest, Money Management speaks to three regional advisers on the opportunities beyond the major cities and the importance of a strong network.
Platform consolidation is expected to accelerate among financial advisers this year, as software company Finura pinpoints which two platforms are set to be the winners, thanks to this trend.
The software provider has made several appointments in its APAC wealth propositions team, with a focus on driving growth across digital advice, Xplan and strategic partnerships.
The platform has announced it plans to close its Xplore managed discretionary account service in 2026 which holds $2 billion in funds under administration.
testing only
WHAT ARE THEY BOASTING ? JG