Former mortgage brokerage convicted, fined

by ssimpkins•06:50 AM, 8 Jun 2021•10 minute read

Former Melbourne brokerage Advanced Choice Finance has been convicted and fined for knowingly making a false statement to ASIC.

Advanced Choice Finance (ACF) has copped a $4,000 penalty after it was found to have knowingly made the false statement.

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Ding Yang, the former director of ACF, had completed and lodged a credit licence annual compliance certificate with ASIC in January 2017, in which he falsely certified that none of the firm’s fit and proper people had their accreditation cancelled by a lender or had their membership with aggregator terminated.

Mr Yang was the sole fit and proper person and responsible manager on ACF’s Australian credit licence.

But in 2012, he had his lender accreditation with the Bank of Melbourne terminated, and in 2016, Mr Yang and ACF had their membership with aggregator Connective OSN Pty Ltd also terminated.

ASIC would later ban Mr Yang from engaging in credit activities for four years and cancel ACF’s licence in 2019.

Mr Yang has now been found to have aided and abetted ACF in making the false statement and ordered to give a recognisance in the sum of $1,000, that he be of good behaviour for two years.

He was not convicted of an offence.

The former broker confirmed he was pleading guilty to aiding and abetting his brokerage in February.

Mr Yang and ACF were charged in December.

[Related: ASIC takes Equiti to court]