ASIC has commenced Federal Court proceedings seeking the appointment of a receiver to investigate a proposed sale of Interprac Financial Planning Pty Ltd (Interprac) by Sequoia Wealth Group Pty Ltd (Sequoia Wealth), a wholly owned subsidiary of ASX-listed Sequoia Financial Group (Sequoia Financial).
Sequoia Wealth entered into a Share Sale Agreement to sell 100% of its shares in Interprac to Conquest Investment Partners Pty Ltd (Conquest) in March 2026 for $50,000.
If appointed by the Court, the receiver will:
- investigate and report on whether the sale of Interprac’s shares by Sequoia Wealth to Conquest is bona fide, fair and reasonable, and
- report on Interprac’s financial position and its solvency.
ASIC is bringing this application out of concern that the intended sale of Interprac may adversely affect the interests of its creditors, including Interprac’s liabilities arising from AFCA complaints in relation to the Shield Master Fund and First Guardian Master Fund, given that Sequoia may cease to guarantee Interprac’s debts upon completion of the sale to Conquest.
To date, AFCA has made two lead determinations against Interprac. There are approximately 911 open AFCA complaints against Interprac in relation to advice provided by its representatives to invest in the collapsed Shield and First Guardian Master Funds.
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Background
- On 25 May 2022, Sequoia Financial, Sequoia Wealth and Interprac (and other “Group Entities”) entered into a Deed of Cross Guarantee whereby each of the Group Entities guaranteed the debts of the other Group Entities in the event of a winding up on certain grounds. If the proposed sale of Interprac proceeds, and the directors of Sequoia Financial certify that the sale is bona fide and the consideration payable is reasonable, then Sequoia and the other Group Entities will be released from their obligations under the Deed of Cross-Guarantee.
- In November 2025, ASIC commenced civil penalty proceedings against Interprac for allegedly failing to ensure its former authorised representatives, Venture Egg (a corporate partnership), and Rhys Reilly Pty Ltd (together, Representatives), complied with the best interests obligations and for failing to have adequate risk management systems (25-274MR). Together, these Representatives advised around 6,843 clients to invest around $677 million of their superannuation into Shield and First Guardian. In that proceeding, ASIC is seeking declarations, civil penalties, and orders to restrain Interprac from carrying on a financial services business.