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ASIC announces action against 13 SMSF auditors
ASIC has taken action against the registration of 13 approved SMSF auditors during the first half of 2024.
ASIC’s concerns covered a range of topics, including breaches of auditing and assurance standards, independence requirements, continuing professional development obligations, or for not being a fit and proper person to remain an approved SMSF auditor.
This follows action against 15 SMSF auditors in March 2024 who were engaged in “in-house audits”.
Between 1 January 2024 and 30 June 2024, ASIC:
- disqualified seven SMSF auditors,
- suspended one SMSF auditor (after the original disqualification decision was varied upon their request for reconsideration),
- imposed additional conditions on four SMSF auditors, and
- cancelled the registration of one SMSF auditor.
Tak Cheng, Lin Chou, Kristian Convery, John Giannicos, Mark Gynther, John Hamilton, Md Nazrul Islam and Kylie Wee were disqualified from being SMSF auditors.
All eight SMSF auditors requested ASIC reconsider its disqualification decision and the disqualifications in each case were confirmed, except Ms Wee’s application.
Wee’s disqualification was in effect from 14 June 2024 until 27 August 2024. On 27 August 2024, Wee’s disqualification was revoked and varied, upon her request for reconsideration, to a suspension of three years and three months and additional conditions were imposed on her registration for completion after the suspension period. Wee’s suspension commenced on 19 September 2024.
Islam has applied to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for review of the confirmed disqualification decision and this review is ongoing. Convery also applied to the AAT for a stay and review of the confirmed disqualification decision. Both of Convery’s applications were dismissed by the AAT.
Mohammed Bhuiyan, Paul Judge, Yan Liu and Liushui Xie had additional conditions imposed on their SMSF auditor registration. Conditions are specific to the auditor and the relevant deficient conduct (see the SMSF Auditor register), and impose various obligations such as undertaking additional professional development, passing the SMSF auditor competency exam and independent review of SMSF audit files.
Max Haber had his SMSF auditor registration cancelled.
All SMSF auditors were referred to ASIC by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
Additionally, between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024, ASIC has made 46 decisions in relation to the registration of approved SMSF auditors:
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