ASIC

A court has held that a “nuanced” business model used by a rental company providing long-term leases to often vulnerable consumer for household items breached the Credit Act, finding the loan agreements were in substance credit contracts. Federal Court Justice Lisa Hespe found on Wednesday that Rent4Keeps attempted to avoid being caught by the Credit…

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has argued the relief sought in proceedings against the director of two Paladin Group units does not constitute a penalty, as it challenges his reliance on the privilege against self-exposure to penalty.

Wealth investment firm Ord Minnett has filed a cross-claim arguing a former executive who claims he was sacked for complaining about a $110,000 cut in his pay imposed after ASIC slapped the firm with a penalty for breaching market rules.

Courtenay House director Tony Iervasi has been sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to charges connected to a $180 million Ponzi scheme that duped hundreds of investors.

ASIC has won its bid to appoint receivers to a managed investment scheme run by Keystone Asset Management after expressing “grave concerns” that investor funds were used to pay sports stars and buy a $4.3 million home for its former director.

A former financial advisor at the now-defunct Growth Plus Financial Group has been convicted on 28 counts of fraud and jailed for 12 years for defrauding clients of $6 million, in conduct a judge described as “evil” and “systematic”.

A three-day penalty hearing in action against payday lenders BSF Solutions and Cigno — in which ASIC is seeking a multi-million dollar fine — has been put on ice until after a challenge to a finding that they were unlicensed credit providers.

The corporate regulator has won its case against Bit Trade, the Australian provider of the Kraken crypto exchange, after a judge rejected the company’s argument that its product was not a credit facility. 

The CDPP has complained about being brought back to court “again and again” to deal with Clive Palmer’s complaints about a compulsory examination by ASIC, as the corporate regulator seeks to have his case challenging the lawfulness of the seven year-old examination thrown out as an abuse of process. 

A former manager of BBY has been handed a two and half year sentence after pleading guilty to criminal charges following the stockbroking firm’s collapse.