The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) has revoked Equitise’s crowdfunding services license, effective from April 3rd, citing a string of compliance failures and regulatory breaches.
Reasons Behind the Move
Equitise’s license cancellation stems from various factors indicating its inability to meet regulatory obligations. These include the company’s failure to furnish essential financial reports and its deregistration from the Financial Service Providers Register (FSPR). Additionally, Equitise has demonstrated a consistent pattern of non-compliance with legislative requirements.
The impact of Equitise’s non-compliance is significant, given its role in crowdfunding for numerous fintechs and financial services companies across Australia and New Zealand. The company failed to submit audited financial statements for the year ended June 30th by the October 30th deadline. Moreover, it neglected to provide the necessary annual agreed-upon procedures report for 2023 and other essential documents. Despite deregistration from the FSPR, Equitise continued to facilitate crowdfunding offers unlawfully, compounding its regulatory breaches.
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Peter Taylor, FMA’s director of specialist supervision and response, underscored the gravity of revoking a license, stating, “Canceling a provider’s license is one of the strongest regulatory actions we can take and is not a decision the FMA takes lightly.” He emphasized the imperative for financial service providers to adhere to legislative requirements and act lawfully, asserting that such rules are in place to protect consumers and ensure market integrity.
