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Australia's corporate regulator alleges a prominent Sydney lawyer who provided training courses and services covering asset protection and wealth management was "in the habit of stating she held licences when she did not", and has banned her from engaging in credit activity for four years.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) claims Dominique Grubisa, a founder and director of DG Institute, represented that she and her company DGI Wealth held an Australian financial services licence and Australian credit licence when neither was the case.
The regulator also alleges Grubisa represented herself as an 'ASIC licenced debt specialist' despite no such licence existing at that time, and that she failed to rectify these misrepresentations despite being made aware they were false.
ASIC also alleges she encouraged her students to use data from the Family Court list for an improper purpose, such as identifying people in financial distress in the hope of buying undervalued property.
The regulator also alleged that Grubisa "failed to conduct herself with the professionalism of someone providing financial and credit services" and "has a habit of not telling the truth".
The four-year ban on Grubisa includes a prohibition on providing financial services, performing any function in a credit entity, or controlling a credit entity or financial services business. The DG Institute founder has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of ASIC’s decision.
Other companies within the DGI group of companies include DGI Debt Management Pty Ltd, DGI Finance Pty Ltd and Master Wealth Control Pty Ltd.
Master Wealth Control’s ACL was cancelled on 5 May 2021 because it had not engaged in credit activity since it was granted.
On her personal website, Grubisa describes herself as a lawyer, author, property educator and asset protection specialist, who founded DG Institute with the mission to empower everyday Australians to grow and protect their wealth.
In 2018, she told News.com.au the DG Institute was turning over "tens of millions of dollars" in Australia and abroad.
Grubisa had not yet responded to requests for comment at the time of writing.
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