ASIC today released its latest six-monthly enforcement report, detailing outcomes achieved between 1 July 2014 and 31 December 2014.
ASIC achieved 348 enforcement outcomes. This included criminal as well as civil and administrative (e.g. banning or disqualification) actions, and negotiated outcomes, including enforceable undertakings.
These outcomes were achieved across the financial services, market integrity, corporate governance and small business areas.
The report highlights ASIC’s ongoing focus on tackling serious corporate fraud and loan fraud and ASIC’s use of civil penalty proceedings to enforce the law.
‘ASIC investigates serious white collar crime. We have recently completed several significant enforcement actions after detecting serious fraud by company directors and officers, committed against the companies they serve and the investing public. These results demonstrate that for those who steal and deceive the consequences are great.’ ASIC Commissioner Greg Tanzer said.
‘Current and future areas of focus for ASIC include loan fraud, financial market benchmark rates, illegal phoenix activity and retail margin foreign exchange trading. We expect to achieve noteworthy outcomes as a result of this work.’
For the last six months some of the more notable outcomes included:
- Former Genetic Technologies Ltd (GTG) chief executive Dr Mervyn Jacobson was sentenced to a total term of two years and eight months imprisonment after being convicted of 35 charges relating to his involvement in the manipulation of GTG shares over a six-month period. This is the largest penalty ever imposed for a market manipulation in Australia (refer 14-320MR)
- Mark Ronald Letten was sentenced to five years and eight months imprisonment after pleading guilty to 27 charges under the Corporations Act 2001 (Corporations Act), including operating 21 unregistered managed investment schemes relating to property development (refer 14-200MR)
- Five former directors of Australian Property Custodian Holdings Ltd who breached their directors’ duties by making an illegal related party payment of more than $30 million were disqualified from managing a company for a combined total of 25 years and three months and fined a total of $310,000 (refer14-323MR)
- The High Court of Australia unanimously dismissed an appeal by Wellington Capital Limited challenging a decision of the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia that found Wellington had acted in a way that was not in accordance with the constitution of a fund for which it acts as the responsible entity (refer 14-293MR)
- Lukas James Kamay and Christopher Russell Hill pleaded guilty to multiple charges relating to insider trading activity that occurred between August 2013 and May 2014 and resulted in profits of approximately $7 million (refer 14-100MR)
Download Report 421 ASIC enforcement outcomes: July to December 2014 (REP 421)
Enforcement outcomes: 1 July to 31 December 2014
Below are the key statistics from REP 421, adapted from Table 1 of the report. All figures in tables are outcomes per defendant.
|
Area of enforcement |
Criminal |
Civil |
Administrative remedies |
Enforceable undertakings/ negotiated outcomes |
Public warning notice |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Market integrity |
8 |
– |
9 |
3 |
– |
20 |
|
Insider trading |
3 |
|
|
|
|
3 |
|
Market manipulation |
2 |
|
|
|
|
2 |
|
Continuous disclosure |
|
|
1 |
1 |
|
2 |
|
Market integrity rules |
|
|
8 |
|
|
8 |
|
Other market misconduct |
3 |
|
|
2 |
|
5 |
|
Corporate governance |
7 |
5 |
21 |
1 |
– |
34 |
|
Action against directors |
7 |
4 |
|
|
|
11 |
|
Insolvency |
|
|
|
|
|
– |
|
Action against liquidators |
|
1 |
1^ |
|
|
2 |
|
Action against auditors |
|
|
1 |
1 |
|
2 |
|
Other corporate governance misconduct |
|
|
19 |
|
|
19 |
|
Financial services |
7 |
14 |
50 |
18 |
1 |
90 |
|
Unlicensed conduct |
1 |
|
|
|
|
1 |
|
Dishonest conduct, misleading statements, unconscionable conduct |
1 |
8 |
9 |
2 |
|
20 |
|
Misappropriation, theft, fraud |
1 |
|
2 |
|
|
3 |
|
Credit |
2 |
1 |
12# |
7 |
|
22 |
|
Other financial services misconduct |
2 |
5** |
27 |
9 |
1 |
44 |
|
Subtotal |
22 |
19 |
80 |
22 |
1 |
144 |
|
Small business compliance and deterrence |
182 |
– |
21 |
– |
1 |
204 |
|
Action against directors |
172 |
|
21 |
|
1 |
194 |
|
Efficient registration and licensing |
10 |
|
|
|
|
10 |
|
Total |
204 |
19 |
101 |
22 |
2 |
348 |
^ Outcome currently under appeal.
# One outcome currently under appeal.
** Outcomes currently under appeal.
