An Auckland man who allegedly faked documents claiming his firm was licenced to give financial advice has been charged by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA).
Yuen Pok Loo, known as Paul Loo, faces four charges in the Manukau District Court for forgery, using a forged document, providing financial services while not registered and failing to comply with a permanent stop order after engaging in “misleading and dishonest conduct”.
The FMA said in a release that Loo forged a letter purporting to be from the FMA granting his company Wisdom House Investment Partners Limited a full financial advice provider licence, and sent it to his clients.
The FMA claims Loo provided financial advice without a registration when he was required to be registered, and that he breached the FMA’s stop order by continuing to contact clients and provide financial advice.
The regulator said the leading charges under the Crimes Act that Loo faced carry a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment. The charge under the Financial Services Provider Act carried a maximum penalty of 12 months' imprisonment or a fine not exceeding $100,000 or both.
The final charge under carried a maximum penalty of a fine not exceeding $300,000.
In August 2022 the FMA issued a permanent stop order to Wisdom House Investment Partners Limited and Loo. It said at the time it was satisfied Loo falsely held himself out as a financial adviser in an email to clients or potential clients.
“The email also contained statements that directly or indirectly refer to the supply, or possible supply, of a financial advice service and are reasonably likely to induce persons to request the supply of a financial advice service.”
It said attached to the email was a forged letter “confirming that the FMA had granted Wisdom House a financial advice provider (FAP) licence”.
The FMA said it had cancelled the the transitional FAP licence of Wisdom House in December 2021 after Loo engaged in serious misconduct at his previous employer.
The FMA advised the public not to engage with, nor to accept offers of financial services from, and not to provide money to, Loo or Wisdom House.
Loo appeared in the Manukau District Court on 22 May 2023 and was remanded without plea until 13 June 2023.
Wisdom House Investment Partners is also being removed from the Companies Register.
25 Comments
May or may not be.
I agree with the principle of being tough on immigrants which act fraudulently. We don't want to be viewed as a country that is soft on this. For example Ravi Arora the liquor baron should've been sent home for screwing over other immigrants. As it stands he still has liquor stores and lives in Clearwater.. Great message...
What you'll find is those born in Australia to a parent who at the time was a NZ citizen by Birth or Citizen by Grant, will be NZ citizens by descent automatically, so there will be a lot of people in Oz who have no passport, who have never registered their citizenship with the Dept of Internal Affairs but are automatically citizens by descent. This is how if they are to be a 501 deportee and have no connection to NZ whatsoever, no family or passport, they can be made to get sent to NZ with an emergency travel document funded by the NZ taxpayer.
The 501s were not citizens. Hence they were deported. There is individual responsibility for everyone - including their dependents - who emigrates. Yes it might not seem fair. However, if they had gone through the citizenship process, they would not have been deported.
When I first started working, my first job was with Paul Loo. He was a very patient and thorough man when training others. He also, I believe, was responsible for looking after his parents. Paul is a 2nd generation New Zealander, which makes the racist comment above even worse.
Even though I lost touch with Paul after I left that job, my networks confirm this is the same Paul I worked with. That is very unfortunate. One can only wonder at the thought process that occurs to get oneself into such a ricky pickle.
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