Retired Winnipeg securities advisor acted 'contrary to the public interest': commission decision

The Manitoba Securities Commission has ordered a Winnipeg man to pay $5,000 and prohibited him from working in certain roles at securities companies where he would oversee investment funds. 

Following a hearing last week, a panel with the Manitoba government agency accepted a joint settlement agreement that said William George MacKay "acted in a manner contrary to the public interest" in his work with his company, Advantage Wealth Systems Inc.

Starting in 2008, MacKay provided advice and accepted about $300,000 for investments in securities in three different entities from two clients, according to the panel's April 21 decision.

At no point during that time was he registered under The Securities Act to do that work, the commission's decision said.

Some of that money wasn't returned, but two of his clients recovered it through civil court proceedings, the report said.

"Trading without the required registration undermines investor protection and the integrity of the capital markets," the panel said in its decision.

MacKay will also have to pay $5,000 to the securities commission to cover the cost of the investigation.

As part of a settlement agreement, he's also restricted from working in various roles in companies handling investments, such as a board member, president, treasurer or general manager. 

According to the decision, MacKay is over 70 years of age, retired and not working at this time.

Prior fines

This isn't the first time MacKay has been investigated by a regulator.

In 2016, he was fined $10,000 plus $2,000 in costs after he violated the Insurance Act and the life insurance agent code of conduct by making false or misleading statements, misrepresentation, incompetence and selling the client a product not suited to his needs, according to a decision from the Life Insurance Council of Manitoba.

The client had bought a life insurance policy that had a planned annual premium of $250,000, the decision said, and involved the client borrowing money to pay for it.

The council found the client was cash poor and was planning to purchase the policy to borrow money from it.

But the policy as described by MacKay "did not exist," and the "product was half-baked — or not fully formed" and "should not have been recommended, pursued or settled," the decision said.

In another case the next year, MacKay was ordered to pay $21,000 in fines and investigation costs by the Life Insurance Council of Manitoba. It found MacKay breached Manitoba's Insurance Act in an instance of incompetence.

A client complained about MacKay's handling of a life insurance policy, claiming the policy was meant to be issued in the client's name, rather than in his corporation's name.

The client believed that doing so could have created significant income tax benefits.

MacKay denied the allegations at the time.