Latest news with #FinancialMarketsAuthority
Scoop
a day ago
- Business
- Scoop
FMA Publishes Statement Of Performance Expectations For 2025/26
The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) – Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko – today published its Statement of Performance Expectations (SPE) for 2025/26. The SPE sets out how the FMA will measure and report on progress against its performance measures and targets, and includes forecast financial statements for the 2025/26 year. The SPE is a yearly document and complements the FMA's Statement of Intent 2024-2028, which explains the FMA's medium-term strategic objectives. The two reports should be read together to understand the FMA's performance measures and reporting framework.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Financial adviser Murray McClune pleads guilty to $1.7 million client theft
Financial adviser used client funds for personal use, falsified statements Murray McClune , a former financial adviser, has pleaded guilty to two charges of theft by a person in a special relationship after stealing approximately $1.7 million from clients. The charges followed an investigation by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). McClune, who began working in the insurance industry in the late 1960s, offered investment opportunities through his business, Insurance Plus Limited . Between 2016 and 2022, he obtained approximately $1.7 million from two sets of elderly clients under the pretense of investing the money on their behalf. Also read: Who is Mark Rocket? The Christchurch entrepreneur who just became the first New Zealander in space Instead of investing the funds, McClune used portions of the money for personal purposes. He also created falsified statements to mislead clients into believing their funds were properly invested and to conceal unauthorized financial activities. The misconduct was discovered when McClune could not repay clients upon request. 'McClune dealt with the funds of elderly, vulnerable investors with whom he had a close personal relationship and took advantage of those relationships to misappropriate their funds,' said Margot Gatland, FMA's head of enforcement. 'In addition to being devastating to the victims, offending of this nature undermines public confidence in registered advisers and harms their reputations.' Live Events McClune was scheduled to stand trial in July but entered a guilty plea ahead of the trial. He now faces a maximum prison sentence of seven years. He was registered on the Financial Service Providers Register as an insurance broker until November 2016 and remained a registered financial adviser until April 2022. According to the Companies Office, the Registrar of Companies has begun the process of removing Insurance Plus Limited from the corporate register. McClune is listed as the sole director and shareholder of the company. The Financial Markets Authority continues to emphasize the importance of safeguarding investor trust, particularly when it involves financial advisers in positions of special responsibility.
1News
2 days ago
- Business
- 1News
Ex-financial adviser pleads guilty to $1.7m theft from elderly clients
A former financial adviser has pleaded guilty after misappropriating $1.7 million from two sets of "elderly clients" and issuing false statements to cover up the fraud. Murray McClune pleaded guilty to two charges of theft by a person in a special relationship under the Crimes Act 1961 following an investigation by the Financial Markets Authority. He had worked in the insurance industry since the late 1960s and had an established book of clients, including some who had used his services for decades and considered him a friend. Between 2016 and 2022, McClune procured around $1.7 million from two sets of elderly clients on the basis he would invest the funds on their behalf. The FMA investigation found he used some of those funds for his own personal purposes and issued false statements to cover his tracks. ADVERTISEMENT His offending was detected when he was unable to repay the funds on demand. Margot Gatland, FMA Head of Enforcement. (Source: Supplied) FMA head of enforcement Margot Gatland said McClune took advantage of elderly, vulnerable investors with which he had a close relationship to misappropriate their funds. "New Zealand's financial system relies on trust, transparency and fairness. In addition to being devastating to the victims, offending of this nature undermines public confidence in registered advisers and harms their reputations. She said the FMA would respond to serious misconduct of this type where required and to the "fullest extent of the law". Theft by a person in a special relationship carried a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Former financial advisor admits theft charges for stealing money from clients
Murray McClune took about $1.7m from clients on the basis he would invest it on their behalf but instead used some of the funds for personal purposes. Photo: 123RF A former financial advisor has admitted theft charges for stealing money from elderly clients, following an investigation by the Financial Markets Authority. The FMA said Murray McClune stole from two sets of elderly clients between 2016 and 2022. It said he took about $1.7 million from the clients on the basis he would invest it on their behalf, but instead used some of those funds for personal purposes. The case against McClune was originally brought by the FMA but became a Crown prosecution case after McClune initially elected trial by jury, before pleading guilty to two charges of theft by a person in a special relationship - charges that carried a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment. The FMA said McClune had worked in the insurance industry since the late 1960s, and had an established book of clients, including some loyal customers who considered him a friend and used his services for decades. In addition to providing insurance advice, McClune also offered investment opportunities for clients. The FMA said he provided falsified statements to clients to hide his offending, until he was caught when he could not repay the funds on demand. FMA head of enforcement Margot Gatland said McClune "took advantage" of elderly and vulnerable investors. "In addition to being devastating to the victims, offending of this nature undermines public confidence in registered advisers and harms their reputations," Gatland said. McClune mainly offered his services through his business Insurance Plus Limited, which was registered in Whangaparāoa, north of Auckland. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
3 days ago
- Business
- Scoop
Former Financial Adviser Pleads Guilty To Charges Of Theft
Murray McClune, a former financial adviser, has pleaded guilty to two charges of theft by a person in a special relationship (s 220(1) of the Crimes Act 1961), following an investigation by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) – Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko. Mr McClune had worked in the insurance industry since the late 1960s. He had an established book of clients, including some who had used his services for decades and considered him a friend. In addition to providing advice on insurance, Mr McClune also offered investment opportunities to some of his clients. Between 2016 and 2022 Mr McClune procured approximately $1.7 million from two sets of elderly clients – on the basis that he would invest the funds on their behalf. Instead, he used some of those funds for his own personal purposes. To give the impression that their funds remained invested and to conceal his unauthorised dealings, he issued falsified statements to the clients, until his offending was detected when he was unable to repay the funds on demand. Margot Gatland, FMA Head of Enforcement, said, 'Mr McClune dealt with the funds of elderly, vulnerable investors with whom he had a close personal relationship and took advantage of those relationships to misappropriate their funds. 'New Zealand's financial system relies on trust, transparency and fairness. In addition to being devastating to the victims, offending of this nature undermines public confidence in registered advisers and harms their reputations. The FMA will respond to serious misconduct of this type where required and to the fullest extent of the law.' This case was originally brought by the FMA but became a Crown prosecution after Mr McClune initially elected trial by Jury, before deciding to plead guilty. Theft by a person in a special relationship carries a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment. Note: Mr McClune was registered on the Financial Service Providers Register as an insurance broker from 26 March 2011 to 2 November 2016. He was registered as a financial adviser between 26 March 2011 and 26 April 2022. Mr McClune offered his services primarily through his business Insurance Plus Ltd.
