ASIC bans former mortgage director

In a statement yesterday the corporate regulator said that Mr Anthony John Downey, of Brighton, Victoria was, until 3 June 2015, a director of Platinum Mortgage Securities Limited. ASIC found that Mr Downey engaged in misleading conduct by providing false documents to support an application for an Australian visa, knowing that the documents would be provided to an Australian government department.

The regulator found that the relevant documents prepared by Mr Downey falsely represented that the visa applicant had made a qualifying investment with Platinum Mortgage Securities Limited.

"ASIC expects directors and officers of financial services licensees to act with integrity when performing their role and, when they fail to do so, we will act to remove them from the industry," ASIC commissioner Greg Tanzer said.

The matter was reported to ASIC by Platinum Mortgage Securities Limited. Mr Downey has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a review of ASIC’s decision.