INMAG JUN 16_page layouts 9/06/2016 2:19 pm Page 26
THE MAD, BAD, TOTALLY WEIRD AND THE GREAT
WINLEY INSURANCE, THE PERTH-BASED authorised representative company whose investors emptied its broker trust fund and skipped town with the proceeds, is dead. But like smoke after a bushfire, the smell lingers. For those who came in late, let’s recap the Winley story to date. You will find this tale weaving all over the place, from Perth to Los Angeles. Its central figures are a reclusive American couple who invested in building a company and then stole millions of dollars from it. But it’s the denouement of this saga, which you’ll find in part two of this article, that you’re going to have a tough time believing. It involves what was either an altruistic scheme for a worthy cause that went wrong or a shameless global scam intended to raise billions of dollars. Winley was the name of an authorised representative (AR) group that operated in Perth from about 2010. 26
It’s one of many such companies operating in Australia. AR groups operate under a single financial services licence. They centralise and deal with the regulatory and business complexities for a number of intermediaries (its authorised representatives) who bring in the money through premiums collected from clients. The money can be held in a trust fund for 90 days before being passed on to the insurers. The company charges its ARs fees and generally makes things work. Winley had about 47 intermediaries working for it. Most were in Western Australia and most were quite small operators. The company’s managing director was Jeff Bailey, who operates a broking business north of Perth. He was also a Winley AR. The company was set up in July 2009 using investment capital provided by Chandanie and Steve Godwin, two US citiinsuranceNEWS
June/July 2016
zens who had made their home in Perth. (Winley took its name from the last syllables of the Godwin and Bailey surnames.) Chandanie and Steve Godwin are, by any measure, a remarkable couple. In an era when practically every person in the developed world is online in some form or other, they’re impossible to find. There are a couple of small and unprintable pictures of Ms Godwin in groups at Perth insurance events. But of her husband there is no sign. Online, Steve Godwin does not exist. Despite his obvious determination to maintain a low profile, Steve Godwin’s unusual appearance and manner in the closely knit Perth insurance community could hardly have failed to attract attention. His normal garb for business meetings was jeans, a hoodie and a baseball cap. He sometimes sported several mobile phones. People
