Broker banned for missing discrepancies
30 April 2010 at 16:37
A mortgage broker has been penalised by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for submitting two mortgage applications but failing to notice "obvious discrepancies".
Between November 2007 and March 2008, the FSA found that Ashok Sharma, of Ash Commercials (UK) Limited in Uxbridge, submitted two mortgage applications each for two customers but failed to notice irregularities which should have alerted him to the risk that the customers were using the firm to commit mortgage fraud.
According to the FSA, the investigation also revealed that Mr Sharma had provided mortgage advice when not qualified to do so, while failing to comply with a legal requirement to provide the FSA with a report from a third party on the quality of the advice he gave to customers.
"Due to these failings, the FSA concluded that Sharma is not fit and proper and has banned him from working in regulated financial services," it stated.