Violation of Regulations: Advisor Sold Own Company's Investment Products
Estimated Losses of 270 Million Won for 14 Young Clients
Regarding allegations that a financial advisor participating in Seoul City's youth-targeted program "Seoul Young Tech" committed financial fraud, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 20th that it will hold the individual legally accountable and implement measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.
The city released an explanatory statement on this day, saying, "We plan to pursue legal responsibility against the former Young Tech advisor for misusing personal information acquired during the Young Tech program period and selling specific financial products."
The city added, "We will strengthen verification and qualification requirements for affiliated investment firms when selecting advisors, prohibit product recommendations during financial counseling, monitor counseling content, and conduct follow-up investigations to track any misuse of personal information after counseling sessions, as part of our measures to prevent recurrence."
Seoul Young Tech is a free financial education program for young people. Recently, several youths who suffered financial losses after being defrauded by Advisor A, who was appointed as a financial advisor for this program, filed a police report, prompting an ongoing investigation. According to the city, Advisor A was an AFPK-certified advisor appointed in 2023. Currently, A is no longer serving as an advisor as the appointment period has expired.
During the Young Tech advisor appointment period, recommending financial products is strictly prohibited. Advisors are informed of this rule at least 6 to 9 times, and participants are informed 3 to 5 times.
Additionally, upon appointment, advisors are required to sign a "compliance confirmation form" and must immediately dispose of all personal information after counseling sessions. However, Advisor A violated this provision by retaining personal information and selling investment products from their own company.
After recognizing the occurrence of youth victims, the city contacted all 93 individuals who had been counseled by Advisor A via text message and phone to confirm whether they had invested in products and whether any damages had occurred. As a result, it was initially determined that 14 people suffered losses totaling approximately 270 million won. The Young Tech Secretariat contacted Advisor A and obtained a written plan for compensation of the losses.
According to the city, Advisor A stated that this incident is unrelated to Seoul Young Tech and apologized for causing significant concern due to personal misconduct.
A city official said, "We received reports that Advisor A was encouraging some victims to withdraw legal proceedings by claiming to have coordinated with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, but this is completely untrue," adding, "We urge victims to pursue all legal procedures to ensure their rights are protected."
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