Westpac has confirmed it has been served with its first shareholder class action lawsuit following the money laundering scandal that threw the lender into turmoil and cost former chief executive Brian Hartzer his position at the bank |CharlotteGriev1
Five days after AUSTRAC lodged its damning statement of claim to the Federal Court, Phi Finney McDonald announced it was investigating the scope of a shareholder class action.Since then, principal lawyer Tim Finney explains the firm has been contacted by hundreds of retail investors as well as institutional investors who were disturbed and concerned by AUSTRAC's claims.
The class action is open to anyone who bought shares between December 2013 and November 2019 and will be financed by Woodsford Litigation Funding. Mr Finney said the shareholder purchase plan withdrawal option for retail shareholders was a "clear recognition" that these shareholders did not have the appropriate information to inform their investment decisions."The disclosures contained in Westpac's prior announcements downplay the volume, extent and nature of the breaches," Mr Finney said.
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