Stavro Damour, who was a director at now-collapsed CFD broker Burndale, pleaded guilty to several breach of trust offences, including illegally transferring more than A$681,000 (about US$490,000) of company funds, which were primarily customer deposits, between 2017 and 2018.
Clients of the now collapsed broker are Still owed more than AU$8.9 million (US$6.5 million).
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Guilty plea after nearly 8 years
The Australian Financial Services Regulatory Authority announced today (Friday) that Damore has pleaded guilty to three “framed” charges, which include dishonest use of his position as a director, dishonest conduct and allowing a false and misleading statement to be made in a document submitted to the regulator.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) formally moved against Damore in mid-2023 by bringing charges against him. The latest guilty plea came after his not guilty plea in September 2024.
Damore, who is scheduled to be sentenced on July 2, 2026, faces a hefty financial penalty or up to 10 years in prison under one of the charges.
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Melbourne-based Berndale collapsed in November 2018 after its AFS license was revoked over multiple concerns, including failure to comply with reporting obligations and respond to legal notices. At the time, the regulator was also concerned that Damore was not qualified to act as a director.
The illegal transfer of company funds, according to the regulator, occurred before and in the days after the license was revoked.
Besides Damore, the Australian regulator also charged Daniel Kirby, another director at the collapsed broker, but he did He has already pleaded guilty to similar charges In September 2024.
Damore used to be Associated with the broker FXTGwhich has also reportedly come under scrutiny by the Australian regulatory body. In 2016, there were reports that the company owed investors approximately $2 million. It is worth noting that Kirby has also been in contact with FXTG in his capacity as COO.
This article was written by Arnab Shomi at www.financemagnates.com.
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