The amount of white collar crime committed in financial services almost doubled in the second half of 2014, according to ASIC’s latest six-monthly enforcement report.
In the six months to June 2014, ASIC took enforcement action against 48 cases of white collar crime related to financial services. However, the corporate regulator almost doubled that in the six months to December, taking action against 89 cases of white collar crime in the financial services sector. This includes unlicensed or dishonest conduct, fraud and theft.
ASIC’s commissioner Greg Tanzer says this highlights the regulator’s ongoing focus on tackling serious corporate fraud and loan fraud.
“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,” he said.
When it comes to loan fraud specifically, the regulator says it has a “clear commitment to tackling loan fraud involving false loan applications and related documents”.
