Astarra's Shawn Richard jailed
Former Astarra Asset Management investment manager Shawn Richard has today been jailed for two and a half years in the New South Wales Supreme Court.
Richard was facing a sentence of up to 10 years for his part in the largest theft of superannuation funds in Australian history, which saw Australian investors initially stripped of more than $100 million, with eventual total losses of $26.6 million.
Richard has previously pleaded guilty to dishonestly taking more than $6.4 million in undisclosed payments, and he personally received around $1.3 million in secret payments. Last year Richard entered into an enforceable undertaking with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, which saw him banned for life from the Australian financial services industry.
Richard today pleaded guilty to two counts of dishonest conduct for his part in the Astarra/Trio Capital fraud.
The jail term is to be followed by a 15-month good behaviour bond.
Recommended for you
ASIC has cancelled a Sydney AFSL for failing to pay a $64,000 AFCA determination related to inappropriate advice, which then had to be paid by the CSLR.
A former Brisbane financial adviser has been charged with 26 counts of dishonest conduct regarding a failure to disclose he would receive substantial commission payments for investments.
Inefficient data processes and systems mean advisers are spending over half of their time on product implementation and administration at the expense of clients, according to research.
With the regulator announcing its enforcement focus for 2025 last week, law firm Hall & Wilcox examines the areas which have dropped down the list in priority for the regulator.
