Advisers banned for 4 and 8 years over Shield advice
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has banned two advisers for four and eight years on matters relating to the Shield Master Fund.
ASIC announced today it had banned the former Queensland adviser, Isaac Jacob McQueen from providing financial services, controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business or performing any function involved in the carrying on of a financial services business for four years. It later announced it has banned Sydney adviser, Matthew Simon Bradley on the same basis for eight years.
ASIC found that McQueen gave inappropriate advice to certain clients which was not in their best interests as he recommended that they invest most of their superannuation into the High Growth class or the Growth class of the Shield Master Fund which were high risk investments. Shield also had a limited trading history.
It said the banning order took effect from 17 June 2025.
In the case of Bradley, also an MWL adviser, it said he gave inappropriate advice to certain clients which was not in their best interests as he recommended that they invest most of their superannuation into the High Growth class or the Growth class of the Shield Master Fund which were high risk investments or the Balanced class which was a medium-high risk investment.
ASIC also found that Bradley’s statements of advice to certain clients included false and misleading statements that implied clients would enjoy better returns if their superannuation were invested into Shield including:
- projection tables and statements for client’s superannuation that did not have reasonable grounds; and
- representations that Shield had a higher performing track record against other super funds when Shield had only been in existence for a short period.
ASIC has reason to believe that Mr Bradley is not a fit and proper person, is not adequately trained or competent and is likely to contravene a financial services law.
The banning order took effect from 3 July 2025.
ASIC said McQueen was authorised by MWL Financial Services from 31 October 2022 to 9 June, 2023 noting that in February, 2024, the regulator halted new offers of investments in Shield.
Its backgrounding of the announcement said that in June 2024, ASIC took action to secure the assets held within Shield (24-129MR). ASIC sought orders to preserve the assets of the scheme so that they may be recovered, to the extent available, for the benefit of investors while the investigation is continuing.
“ASIC understands that, since February 2022, funds totalling more than $480 million have been invested in Shield by at least 5,800 consumers, who accessed Shield primarily through superannuation platforms, the trustees for which were Macquarie Investment Management Limited and Equity Trustees Superannuation Limited.
“The investigation to date suggests that potential investors were called by lead generators and referred to personal financial advice providers who advised investors to roll their superannuation assets into a retail choice superannuation fund and then to invest part or all of their superannuation into Shield.
“ASIC is investigating the circumstances surrounding Shield. ASIC is investigating Keystone Asset Management Ltd (in liquidation) (the responsible entity for Shield) and its directors and officers, the role of the superannuation trustees, certain financial advisers who recommended investors invest in Shield, the lead generators, and others.
ASIC has also cancelled the Australian financial services licence of Financial Services Group Australia Pty Ltd (FSGA) (in liquidation) effective 7 June 2025 and permanently banned FSGA’s Responsible Manager Graham Holmes. Certain authorised representatives of FSGA provided personal financial product advice to consumers who invested in the Shield Master Fund,” the ASIC announcement said.
Good! 4 and 8 years is too lenient
Dixon’s Advisers ?
All good says ASIC, thousands of clients flogged Dodgy Dixon’s MIS fiasco’s and ASIC allows the Advisers to be illegally Phoenixed to E&P, no problems, it was a management issue. But ASIC won’t charge management either.
Where is the Govt report into Dodgy Dixon’s MIS fiasco ????
Nerida Cole please get it out of your bottom draw.
Wait, ASIC ban an adviser for 10yrs for $80k fees for no service, but then these guys lose hundreds of millions and they get less years? Makes no sense.
So the compliance manager that worked there for 9 years get’s off scott free. The managers that says get the paraplanning team to do the SOA and we’ll do the research you just “sell” also gets a get out of jail card.
Oh and the staff at ASIC when you contact them about that rubbish advice, and they tell you to stop wasting our time also get a job well done too ? And the ASIC staffer that designs 3 website required to report Advisers and firms like this also gets a pay rise.
But now I pay via CSLR.
@hiding.
You have to presume that these advisers all past the “ethics” exam set by FASEA and the government.
What a joke !
I’m not sure when those in government will learn, that after 25 years of never-ending draconian legislation, you can’t stop poor or crooked behaviour.
All it does is produce “smarter “crooks until they are caught.