Perth adviser receives permanent ban following fraud conviction

The corporate regulator said it has made two orders permanently banning Mark Raymond Sebo following his convictions of fraud.

In September, the Perth financial adviser was sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of embezzling over $1 million from his clients’ self-managed superannuation funds (SMSFs).

“Under the Corporations Act and National Consumer Credit Protection Act, ASIC may permanently ban a person from the financial services and credit industries if they are convicted of fraud,” the corporate regulator said in a statement on Tuesday.

Consequently, on the basis of these convictions, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said Mr Sebo has been banned permanently from providing any financial services; performing any function involved in the carrying on of a financial services business; controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business; and engaging in any credit activities.

Moreover, Mr Sebo has also been barred from performing any function involved in the engaging in of credit activities; and controlling, whether alone or in concert with one or more other entities, another person who engages in credit activities.

The banning took effect from 5 February 2024. 

Back in September, Mr Sebo pleaded not guilty in the Western Australia District Court to 36 charges of stealing the money, over a 10-day period in July and August 2019, from the SMSFs of eight couples and individuals.

The court heard the eight clients hired Mr Sebo to help with their SMSFs and he was only allowed to access their accounts with their authorisation.

One of the clients told the court how they noticed money had disappeared from their accounts without authorisation.

State prosecutor Paul Usher told the court that evidence showed most of the money had been used to gamble on three online betting sites.

In sentencing Mr Sebo, Judge Belinda Lonsdale said his offending was aggravated because he made some of the transactions look like errors, where fees had been deducted twice.

She added that Mr Sebo, who chose not to have legal representation, showed no real remorse.

“The evidence of your guilt was overwhelming, so you never accepted responsibility as you should have,” she said.