The Federal Court has accepted undertakings from five parties that stop alleged misleading and deceptive claims being made during the promotion and provision of option trading seminars. These undertakings were given to the Court as a result of an application by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The five parties include Giann & Giann Pty Ltd, trading as Break Free Events (Break Free Events), and its director, Mr Jon Giannopoulos, and CTC Professional Services Pty Ltd and its director, Mr Carlo Castellano.

The parties also undertook to the Court not to conduct a financial services business or provide financial product advice, particularly in relation to derivatives and securities, as defined in the Corporations Act, without being authorised to do so by an Australian Financial Services licence.

Break Free Events promotes and arranges seminars and conferences on investment strategies and wealth creation concepts.

ASIC alleges that Break Free Events arranged and promoted seminars which promised to teach highly lucrative option trading secrets.

ASIC further alleges that the seminar presenters made representations to attendees of the course that certain trading strategies promoted in the course would enable ordinary people to achieve high and consistent returns. Several of these seminars were presented by Mr Castellano.

In particular, ASIC alleges that Break Free Events made a number of specific claims which, ASIC considers were misleading and deceptive. These claims include:

• by trading options, and working less than 10 hours per week, you can regularly make between $2500 and $7000 a week
• by trading options returns of 150% in five days can normally be made
• by renting shares you can generate a predictable and consistent return every month of $2500 or more
• through attending a seminar conducted by Carlo Castellano it will become virtually impossible not to make money.

Justice Finkelstein of the Federal Court made further orders to enable the proceedings to be brought to trial.