Funds: ASIC freezes assets of cityindexmutual.com
ASIC has obtained urgent Federal Court orders to preserve investors’ funds obtained by a Queensland based company which is holding out that it operates a mutual fund when it is not licensed to do so. The company has a name disturbingly similar to that of a licence holder and ASIC says that clients have handed over funds to the wrong company as a result of confusion over the names.
The orders were obtained on Friday, 16 September 2011 against City Index Australasia Pty Ltd (ACN 152 852 572) and its director, Blair Jason Travers, to restrain the company and Mr Travers from receiving or disposing of any funds in connection with 'City Index Australian Mutual Fund', a financial product offered on their website, http://cityindexmutual.com.
City Index Australasia Pty Ltd purports to offer clients the opportunity to invest in their financial products and claims that returns would be generated through investments in contracts for difference, spread betting, and foreign exchange markets.
Neither City Index Australasia Pty Ltd nor Mr Travers holds an Australian financial services (AFS) licence, the required licence to offer financial products in Australia.
ASIC became aware of the company’s activities following a complaint from City Index Australia Pty Ltd (ACN 141 774 727), an AFS licence holder, which has confirmed that it has no association or affiliation with City Index Australasia.
ASIC is aware investor funds have been mistakenly deposited with City Index Australasia in the belief they were to be invested with City Index Australia.
The court orders obtained by ASIC also prevent City Index Australasia Pty Ltd and Mr Travers from:
- receiving, transferring or disposing of any funds received or held by them in connection with the City Index Australian Mutual Fund;
- disposing of, destroying, amending, altering or parting with possession of their books and record relating to the mutual fund or dealings of the Mutual Fund; and
- taking or sending out of Australia any money, financial products or other property belonging to them.
The above orders remain in force until 23 September 2011. The matter returns to Court on that day.
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