A mortgage broker has been fined £100,000 and banned in the latest of the City regulator’s efforts to crack down on fraud in the sector.
Omotayo Fawole, who operated in south-east London, was the second broker to be fined by the Financial Services Authority this year.
The fine was imposed as the FSA is toughening up its oversight of the mortgage broking industry. Last month it called on more lenders to help stamp out fraud by reporting suspicious applications.
Margaret Cole, the regulator’s director of enforcement, said yesterday that the size of the fine was aimed at deterring other fraudsters. 'We will continue to make examples of people who commit mortgage fraud until behaviour changes,' she said. 'Perpetrators of fraud will find themselves facing bans and significant fines, as well as action by the police or other agencies aimed at confiscation of assets.'
The watchdog has already banned 17 brokers in addition to Mr Fawole this year, compared with a total of six in the whole of last year and just two the year before that.
Financial Times
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