ASIC has taken action against several websites that claim to offer legitimate online financial services and terminated the Australian financial services licence (AFSL) of one firm.
Since late last year, the corporate watchdog has shut down a number of websites, cancelled the AFSL of one particular business, and is successfully seeking a winding-up order regarding another financial services firm.
This week, following ASIC's application, the Supreme Court of New South Wales ordered the winding-up of AC Trading, a firm passing itself off as a United States company that operated an online foreign exchange-trading website.
ASIC obtained court orders on two separate occasions in November and December last year to shut down two websites of AC Trading, and also acted to capture similar websites promoted by the company.
An investigation by the regulator also led to Macro Dealing Advisory's website being closed down.
In October, ASIC received complaints from two investors, based in China, regarding the activities of this Sydney-based company, whose website offered an online trading facility through which an investor could conduct trades for spot contracts and foreign exchange contracts.
Meanwhile, the corporate watchdog also cancelled the AFSL of Hedge Securities and Investments and is continuing to investigate the company, which formerly conducted trading in Australian shares and commodities including hedges and futures.
ASIC said it has also received around 20 complaints regarding an entity known as Guardian Wealth, which claims to be an advisory firm specialising in share and derivative strategies.
Guardian Wealth's website contains a number of false and misleading statements, including a claim it is based in Sydney and registered and regulated by the Australian Securities Exchange.
ASIC's investigation found that the webhost of the website is based in the US, and the regulator is presently working with US regulators to have the website closed down.
"ASIC will take action against websites that purport to offer online financial services - and the firms or people behind them - where such sites are actually run by unlicensed operators or where other misconduct is apparent," ASIC commissioner Peter Boxall said.
