Banking royal commission quiz: what incredibly dubious practices were revealed this week?

1. The celebrity financial planner Sam Henderson from Henderson Maxwell financial planners was in the witness box of the royal commission this week. What is he famous for?

   1. Having his own TV show on Sky News

   2. Winning the Association of Financial Advisers' “Practice of the Year 2016”

   3. Providing financial advice in the Australian Financial Review, the Sydney Morning Herald, the Age, and Money Magazine, and on Channel Ten’s The Project.

   4. All of the above

2. Henderson incorrectly claimed, in his financial services guide, that he had completed:

   1. A bachelor of comparative ethics

   2. A masters of commerce

   3. a PhD in economics

   4. All of the above

3. The royal commission heard evidence from Donna McKenna, an angry customer of Henderson’s. Henderson advised McKenna to roll her public sector superannuation funds into a self-managed super fund with Henderson’s firm. How much would she have lost if she pulled her money out of her public sector fund?

   1. $100,000

   2. $250,000

   3. $500,000

   4. $1m

4. After their initial meeting, Henderson began to prepare advice for McKenna. One of his researchers tried to find out information about McKenna’s super funds by doing what?

   1. Calling her super fund to request specific information, while stating that they were calling on behalf of Sam Henderson

   2. Calling her super fund and impersonating her in an attempt to find out more information about her fund

   3. Looking up McKenna’s LinkedIn page to find out how educated she was

   4. Visiting the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation website

5. When McKenna complained to the Financial Planning Association about the quality of Henderson’s advice, Henderson replied to the FPA saying what?

   1. We accept we made an error when researching Ms McKenna’s situation and we have apologised to her. We’re extremely embarrassed. We have also offered her a full refund.

   2. Ms McKenna has approached this situation with extreme hostility and treated me with her utmost disdain.

   3. Our mistakes would have destroyed Ms McKenna financially if she hadn’t picked them up. I guess she has a right to be upset.

   4. Ms McKenna thinks she is smarter than everyone else in the room.

6. What did the Financial Planning Association do in response to McKenna’s complaint?

   1. Reported Henderson to the police

   2. Expelled Henderson from their organisation

   3. Asked the regulator to strip Henderson of his licence

   4. Agreed not to publicise the fact that a complaint had been made against Henderson

7. The Financial Planning Association’s head of professionalism contacted the banking royal commission about Henderson. What did the FPA representative say to the royal commission?

   1. It asked the royal commission to run Henderson through the wringer to make an example of him

   2. It asked the royal commission to go softly on Henderson

   3. It asked the royal commission not to publicise the fact that McKenna had made a complaint about Henderson because it would cause significant damage to Henderson’s reputation and undermine the FPA’s review process

   4. All of the above

8. In early 2017, National Australia Bank discovered that 353 staff had done what during 2016?

   1. Falsely witnessed the signing of client documents

   2. Billed clients for beverages and snacks consumed during meetings

   3. Lost their clients’ forms

   4. Asked clients out on dates

9. NAB executive Andrew Hagger said the bank decided to reduce the bonuses of senior executives in response to the scandal last year. Why were some of them angry about it?

   1. They said it was unfair because they weren’t directly involved in the scandal and didn’t know it was happening

   2. They were concerned the bonus cuts would affect the morale of the leadership team

   3. They were concerned the bonus cuts would encourage members of the leadership team to sweep future scandals under the carpet

   4. All of the above

10. Hagger said his own bonus was reduced by $60,000 last year, leaving him with a variable bonus of how much?

    1. $60,000

    2. $160,000

    3. $660,000

    4. $960,000

11. How many times has Asic taken criminal proceedings against a licensee in the last decade?

    1. 10 times

    2. Never

    3. Once

    4. 27 times

12. Once an adviser has been reported to Asic for potential misconduct, how long does it take before they are given a ban order?

    1. Three to five weeks

    2. Six months on average

    3. One to three years

    4. Never

Solutions

1:D, 2:B, 3:C, 4:B, 5:B, 6:D, 7:C, 8:A, 9:D, 10:D, 11:C, 12:C

Scores

1. 10 and above.

   Congratulations, you're the next head of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission!

2. 6 and above.

   Not bad. You must have been following the hearings this week, while stuffing your savings into a mattress.

3. 0 and above.

   You seem to know very little. Have you considered a career as a financial adviser?