The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has issued prohibition orders against four individuals banning them from providing financial advice after they were previously convicted for fraud and misconduct at the state courts of Singapore.
Edwin Teh Chin Hong used to work at The Great Eastern Life Assurance Company. He is banned from providing financial advice or taking part in the management, directorship or becoming a shareholder of any financial advisory firm for nine years.
Teh misappropriated around S$350,000 (£203,217, $254,744, €231,078) from seven clients over three years. The insurance agent told customers he was helping them invest their money or pay for their premiums.
In March 2018, he was sentenced to a 34-month jail term.
Joseph Michael was also an insurance agent at The Great Eastern Life Assurance Company, and was banned for five years after he managed to steal S$15,000 from a client under the pretext that he was using the money to pay for insurance premiums.
He was handed down a 10-week prison sentence in August 2016.
More prohibitions
Aloysius Zephaniah Lim Bing Hong was a representative of Prudential Assurance Singapore and stole S$10,000 from a single client by telling them he was using their money to pay for insurance policies even though they had already expired.
He was banned for five years.
Ng Wei Ling was an employee of United Overseas Bank and defrauded seven clients of S$215,000 over 18 months by pretending to be helping them invest in a fixed-deposit promotion at the bank or buy an insurance product.
She made them transfer the funds to her personal bank account and forged the signature of two clients on insurance application n forms.
She received 20-month’s imprisonment and an eight-year prohibition order.
Siew Yee Loo, assistant managing director (policy, payments & financial crime) at the MAS, said: “Those who provide financial services to the public must be trustworthy.
“The four individuals convicted abused the trust that their customers placed in them, and enriched themselves at their customers’ expense. MAS will not tolerate such behaviour and will take decisive action to keep such individuals out of the industry.”
