media release (16-239MR)

ASIC bans North Queensland financial adviser

Published

ASIC has banned Mr Craig Scott Miller, formerly of Malanda in North Queensland, from providing financial services for 18 months.

Mr Miller was employed by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ANZ) as a financial planner between 2008 and 2015 to provide advice to clients of ANZ.

Mr Miller was banned following an ASIC investigation which found that during 2012 and 2014, he engaged in conduct that was likely to mislead. Specifically, he:

  • signed the client's name on an Authority to Proceed (part of a Statement of Advice;
  • requested a client sign a blank Authority to Provide Information (ATPI) document (to be faxed to a superannuation fund), which was photocopied before the names of superannuation funds and other details were inserted;
  • altered an ATPI document after it had been signed by the client; and
  • created two versions of a diary note in relation to the same event, which were signed by Mr Miller and dated with the date of the event they recorded, when the diary notes were created some weeks after the date shown.

ASIC Deputy Chairman Peter Kell said, 'Financial planners are required to meet stringent compliance standards to protect the interests of their clients and instil confidence in the broader financial advice industry. ASIC will ensure advisers who fail to meet these standards are removed from the financial services industry'.

Background

The outcome is a result of ASIC's Wealth Management Project, which was established in October 2014 to lift standards by major financial advice providers.  The Wealth Management Project focuses on the conduct of the largest financial advice firms (NAB, Westpac, CBA ANZ, Macquarie and AMP).

ASIC's work in the Wealth Management Project covers a number of areas including:

  1. working with the largest financial advice firms to address the identification and remediation of non-compliance advice;
  2. seeking regulatory outcomes, where appropriate, against licensees and advisers. As part of this Project, ASIC has, for example, banned the following advisers from the financial services industry, in addition to Mr Miller:
Media enquiries: Contact ASIC Media Unit