In a statement, ASIC said Hobart adviser Hannah Jennings had been banned from providing financial services, carrying on a financial services business and controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business for four years, as of 1 April this year.
An investigation had found that advice Ms Jennings provided around gearing had not been in her clients’ best interests.
“ASIC reviewed advice provided by Ms Jennings which recommended clients continue with double gearing strategies despite knowing that clients struggled to service the borrowing arrangements,” the regulator said.
“In providing this advice, Ms Jennings had no regard to the clients’ relevant personal circumstances, their cash flow position or their ability to cover margin calls. Ms Jennings also failed to consider an exit strategy for her clients as well as appropriate personal insurance cover.”
Additionally, ASIC found Ms Jennings failed to keep proper records and was not adequately trained or competent to provide financial services.
“Her lack of understanding about her legal and professional obligations as a financial adviser created additional risks to her current and future clients,” the regulator said.
Ms Jennings had originally applied to the AAT for a review of her decision but had withdrawn the application earlier in June.
Ms Jennings’ practice, FF Planning Solutions, had been licensed through InterPrac since 2017 and she had worked in the industry since 2009.
The conduct relating to the banning had also occurred when she was an authorised representative of MLC-aligned dealer group Meritum.
….and MLC’s penalty for not adequately supervising their AR?
It often appears that it’s the new advisers – like in this story – who perhaps don’t understand markets over the longer term and get into trouble with these types of strategies. Let’s face it, as she had been an adviser only since May 2009 she has hardly seen any extended market downturns anyway, so little experience to educate her against such a thing.
But I do agree with the observations that completing the FASEA exam is no panacea, either for those folk would will do the wrong thing anyway, or the people who just don’t understand what they have regurgitated in order to pass an exam.
But the adviser completed Ethics and Professionalism in Financial Advice bridging course run by Kaplan. Surely after completing that they instantly became more ethical right??
Passed the FASEA exam last year. Obviously wanted to stay in the industry.
“..continue with double gearing strategies..” But she was only licensed in 2009?. The worst double gearing strategies I saw were written pre GFC (aka Storm, Macquarie) and plenty of those advisers trying to offload them afterwards. Wondering if she took over a book of heavily geared clients with portfolios in such a poor state that the best situation was to hold on and wait for markets to recover, leading to strained client cashflow. Might also account for the poor record keeping? OR shes just stupid, greedy with no clue and should be out anyway.
Took the heat for her employer who was banned a year or two ago
Worked in the industry since 2009….oh joy!
When are ASIC going to land some big fish?
We’ll never see any exec from a bank or bank owned AFSL taken on by ASIC….just the little people sent to the wall for getting the wrong date on an FDS…
Can you please provide a link to someone taken to the wall for providing the wrong date on an FDS
See all the AMP BOLR Compliance audits
it’s 5 years in jail for not providing an FSG or FDS. 5 years.
These ‘advisers’ NEED to stop hurting this industry and clients.. despicable. This makes it harder on advisers doing the right thing and paints them in a terrible light for all. This is not ok. Well done ASIC, the penalty should have been banned for life.
Double gearing strategies – deserves to be banned