She admitted to handling mortgage applications without registration
A British Columbia woman has been fined $35,000 after admitting to acting as a mortgage broker without proper registration and submitting falsified financial documents in multiple mortgage applications.
The consent order, issued by the province’s registrar of mortgage brokers on October 22, detailed violations of BC’s Mortgage Brokers Act by unregistered mortgage broker, Sarbjit Bains, who operated in the Lower Mainland.
Between 2018 and 2019, Bains helped prepare 10 mortgage applications while working as a mortgage specialist for an unnamed financial institution. Mortgage specialists, as defined by the Canadian Securities Institute, are restricted to handling products offered by their employers. However, Bains went beyond her role, preparing and submitting applications to an external bank.
The consent order noted that five of the applications Bains submitted involved another unregistered individual, identified only as JKC, who provided falsified financial documents. Despite receiving these documents from JKC, Bains did not verify their authenticity or meet the mortgage applicants associated with them before forwarding the applications to a bank employee.
“Ms. Bains knew or ought to have known that these documents were not genuine,” the order read, which also noted that some of the documents influenced the bank’s lending decisions.
The names of the banks involved were redacted in the order.
Incomplete qualifications
Although Bains attempted to pursue the necessary qualifications to become a registered mortgage broker, enrolling in a course in 2017 and again in 2019, she never completed the required training.
The consent order revealed that Bains has never been registered as a mortgage broker or submortgage broker in British Columbia.
Despite this, she acted as a broker by meeting with borrowers, collecting personal information, and collaborating with a submortgage broker at the external bank. Four of the applications were for acquaintances of Bains, and her actions led to $3,611 in commissions being sent to her via e-transfer by the submortgage broker.
The financial institution that employed Bains was unaware of her activities, including her submission of applications to an outside bank and receipt of commissions.
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In addition to the $35,000 fine, the registrar ordered Bains to cease acting as a mortgage broker or submortgage broker unless she becomes properly registered.
This case also pointed to broader concerns, as JKC, the unregistered individual who supplied fraudulent documents, was found to have provided similar falsified materials to others in the mortgage sector, including registered brokers.
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