ASIC has slapped a permanent ban on financial adviser Donald James Cuthbertson, banning him from providing any financial services and controlling a financial services business for life.
Cuthbertson’s company, Sydney-based Professional Wealth Management Services (PWMS), also had its Australian Financial Services (AFS) licence cancelled by the regulator, with a condition that the external dispute resolution and arrangements for compensating clients remain in place for 12 months.
Cuthbertson became a director of PWMS on July 29, 2014, and has been the key person on the licence since March 11, 2015. He was also an authorised representative of PWMS from July 2015 to September 28, 2022, and from Dec. 9, 2022, to present.
ASIC said Cuthbertson, a director of PWMS, Professional Wealth Management (PWM), and Professional Wealth Investments, was permanently banned because he was “not a fit and proper person to provide financial services.”
He was found to have “misappropriated investor funds, made false or misleading representations in connection with the redeemable preference shares he offered in PWMS and unlisted shares in PWM, made false or misleading representations regarding the level of risk involved in trading contracts-for-difference, and was involved in dealing with derivatives without appropriate authorisation,” the regulator said in a statement.
ASIC’s investigation also found that PWMS failed to ensure its financial services were provided efficiently, honestly, and fairly, ensure it had adequate arrangements in place to manage conflicts of interest, and maintain total assets exceeding total liabilities as shown in the licensee’s most recent balance sheet lodged with ASIC.
Cuthbertson and PWMS have the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of ASIC’s decision.
