Two former financial advisers were charged with fraud in the Sydney District Court of New South Wales on February 12 following an ASIC investigation.
Planners Tunde Doja and Mohammad Zareei acted unlawfully because they lied to sell complex products to clients, according to the corporate watchdog.
Sydney-based Tunde Doja was charged with eight counts of fraud.
It is alleged that Doja illegally arranged for clients to each put in $300,000 to $600,000 in complex products by using loans through Macquarie Group.
Macquarie Group estimates it lost slightly under $4 million because of lending money for those products, which have defaulted.
The products were: ORB Yields, a hybrid security issued by Citigroup and OM-IP 15 seven, a structured fund made by Man Investments Australia.
Doja was found guilty on November 30, 2007, for gaining $740,025 of commissions from Capital Guaranteed Investments which offered ORB Yields and $341,352 from Man Investments Australia which offered OM-IP 15 seven.
Baulkam Hills-based Mohammad Zareei pleaded guilty to three counts of fraud.
Zareei pleaded guilty to providing unlawful financial advice on behalf of Progressive Investment Securities, which does not own an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL).
He allegedly used false and deceptive statements to convince investors to buy 300,000 units in OM-IP 15 seven.
Doja and Zareei will be sentenced on 28 March and 11 April, respectively, ASIC said.
