ASIC accepts court enforceable undertaking from financial adviser

In a statement on Thursday, the corporate regulator said it has accepted a court enforceable undertaking from former Acquire Strategic Advisers director and financial adviser Gregory Blackaby, from Brisbane, Queensland.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) investigation revealed that Mr Blackaby failed to keep adequate and up-to-date records to show he had provided clients with services they were entitled to under ongoing service arrangements.

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Under the terms of the undertaking, Mr Blackaby has agreed that he will not carry on a financial services business, provide financial services, or act in a managerial capacity of any entity operating a financial services business or providing legal, accounting or other advisory services to a financial services business.

Mr Blackaby was also an authorised representative of Capstone Financial Planning.

ASIC advised that Capstone and Mr Blackaby are undertaking a remediation program for Mr Blackaby’s clients. To date, the program has refunded over $500,000 to clients where the records were not sufficient to ensure that clients had received the services they were entitled to.

Under the terms of the undertaking, Mr Blackaby is also required to notify all clients of the remediation program and their rights to complain to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) if they have disputes with Capstone that cannot otherwise be resolved.

The corporate regulator clarified that it may accept a court enforceable undertaking to improve and enforce compliance with the law, however, it noted that court enforceable undertakings are not always used as an alternative to other enforcement action, they can also be used to complement or enhance such actions.