Sydney-based brokerage firm fined $20,000; Trades franchise to launch in Australia tomorrow: Midday roundup

A Sydney-based financial services provider has been slapped with a $20,400 fine by the Australia Securities and Investment Commission over two misleading statements made on its website in May this year.

 Invast Financial Services, the Australian arm of Japanese company Invast Services, promoted a link on its website that invited investors to download a demonstration to undertake “risk-free trading” of contracts for difference for foreign exchange.

 In a statement, ASIC said it was concerned investors may be misled into believing the demonstration involved risk-free trading, rather than understanding that the demonstration account was risk free.

 The watchdog was also concerned about another statement on the website that read, “Forex CFDs allow you to buy one currency whilst simultaneously selling another”.

 ASIC said this was misleading because CFDs are derivatives and, by their nature, do not involve acquisition or selling of the underlying asset.

 The regulator was concerned both the email to prospective clients and the statements on the website misled consumers about the inherent risks of trading foreign exchange and derivatives.

National service provider franchise by V8 Supercar driver launches tomorrow

A new national trades and services franchise group founded by an Australian V8 Supercar driver will launch tomorrow.

Taskforce allows people to call one number in order to request any number of services – from accounting, to hairdressing and plumbing. Users enter their postcode and are then connected to the relevant service provider in their area.

Founder Jason Bright said in a statement the business has been 15 years in the making.

“The technology has now evolved to enable us to overcome many of the big challenges facing small Australian businesses today,” he said.

“Our model includes no upfront territory fees, no lock-in contracts and all the benefits of being part of a large and supportive collective. We’ve removed the hurdles which in the past have prevented small businesses from becoming part of larger franchise network.”

 Shares up on open

 The S&P/ASX200 benchmark was up 19.5 points to 5415.8 points at 11:59 AEST. On Thursday, the Dow Jones closed up 0.64%, rising 109.14 points to 17,265.99 points.