Non-compliant advisers remained in AMP ranks

Darron Mink, Geoffrey Needs and Calvin Barlow were found to have breached best interests duty obligations by ASIC in 2018, following an investigation commenced when AMP reported systemic breaches by one of its planners, Rommel Panganiban, who was later banned from the industry.

The three advisers were named along with two others in Justice Lee’s judgement against the wealth giant in February 2020 as having breached sections 961B, 961G and 961J of the Corporations Act in relation to advice provided to 10 clients, when the Federal Court ordered AMP to pay $5.18 million for failing to prevent best interests duty breaches by its advisers.

The case related to advisers engaging in “re-writing conduct”, or providing advice that results in the cancellation of the client’s existing insurance policies and places them under new, similar schemes by way of new application rather than a standard transfer.

According to the ASIC adviser register, Mr Mink continued to work as an authorised representative of AMP Financial Planning until October 2020. Mr Needs was authorised under AMPFP until 6 May 2021, while Mr Barlow remains a current authorised representative of the financial planning group.

It’s understood while the advisers faced internal disciplinary action as a result of the breaches, they were not considered serious enough to warrant a termination.

A spokesperson for AMP said the institution had “clear policies and expectations of advisers, with systems and frameworks in place to review adviser behaviour and apply appropriate consequences to protect clients”.

“The financial adviser at the centre of ASIC’s investigation was terminated by AMP in 2014 prior to ASIC’s investigation and proceedings taking place, and clients have been remediated,” the spokesperson said.

“Reviews of advice provided by the three other advisers referred to in the claim concerning insurance re-writing were undertaken previously, and termination was not considered warranted in the circumstances.

“AMP clients can be assured they will be remediated when they have demonstrated loss as a result of inappropriate advice.”

The news comes following the wealth giant terminating a large swathe of its adviser force on the back of its wealth transformation strategy announced in mid-2019, with AMP maintaining it wanted to focus on “a professional and compliant network” of planners going forward.