Vanda Gould sees AFS license cancelled


The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has cancelled the Australian financial services licence (AFSL) of former tax agent Vanda Gould.
The regulator said this was because Gould failed to maintain external dispute resolution membership with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
Gould also failed to lodge profit and loss statements and balance sheets for the 2019 and 2020 financial years.
ASIC said Gould had held a AFSL since December 2003 but ASIC could suspend or cancel this if the licensee failed to meet their obligations.
The former Sydney tax agent had previously been convicted of attempting to pervert the course of justice via witness tampering and ran a global web of companies which dodged Australian tax, and was named as part of the Pandora Papers.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) had previously rejected an application by Gould to stay registered to the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) in May 2019.
Recommended for you
The Reserve Bank of Australia has delivered its first rate decision since the introduction of a new board structure last month.
ASIC was active in the first quarter of 2025 with several financial adviser bannings and court action, while the FSCP also handed down outcomes to advisers.
With a joint venture announced between WT Financial and Merchant Wealth Partners, the firm may have a US background, but partner David Haintz has a long history with Australian financial advice.
The big four bank is set to see $40 million per annum in cost savings as it continues to migrate customers from its Asgard wealth platform to BT Panorama by FY26.