Patrick Simon Mitchell, a Tasmanian citizen, has been blacklisted by ASIC from offering financial services in Australia after pleading guilty to 25 counts of theft in Tasmania’s Supreme Court on March 2 2017. Mr. Mitchell will serve eight years in prison, and will become eligible for parole only after having served five years of his sentence.
Mr. Mitchell has been accused of embezzling a total of AU$2,354,497 from a client under the guise of providing him with financial services. Mr. Mitchell then used the funds that were entrusted to him to afford a frivolous lifestyle. During the 4 years that Mr. Mitchell run his operation, he was considered an authorized representative of a National Australia Bank subsidiary. The ban came into force on May 26 2017.
Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) Deputy Chair Peter Kell stated: “ASIC will act to remove people from the financial services industry who act dishonestly and breach the trust of their clients.” ASIC has the right to permanently ban an individual or company that has been convicted of fraudulent conduct such as stealing, without holding a hearing.
In early May, Finance Magnates reported on from the Supreme Court of New South Wales to freeze the assets of a number of asset management companies. The Australian regulator also obtained orders that forbid the firms from dealing or offering financial services to clients. The restricted bank accounts are estimated at AU$25 million in total.
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