Sydney businessman Paul Barrett yesterday refused to comment on the future of the controversial Henderson Maxwell advice practice within his company's financial planning network.Since leaving ANZ in 2013 as the managing director of advice and distribution in the bank's global wealth division, Barrett has built a national network of financial advice businesses through a company known as AZ Next Generation Advisory Limited.The firm has acquired a string of financial advice and accounting practices, including well-known providers such as Eureka Whittaker Macnaught, Wealthmed and Wealthwise.In December last year, Barrett announced that AZ Next Generation Advisory had entered a binding agreement to acquire the Henderson Maxwell business for an undisclosed sum.Given the evidence presented to the Hayne Royal Commission on Tuesday, the acquisition might turn out to be a costly one for AZ Next Generation Advisory.Barrett declined to say what the controversy surrounding Henderson Maxwell could mean for his company."I'm not in a position to comment," he told Banking Day in a phone conversation on Wednesday.The Hayne Royal Commission heard on Tuesday that Henderson Maxwell's founder and chief executive Sam Henderson gave flawed advice that would have triggered a A$500,000 forfeit of deferred retirement benefits for one of his clients, Donna McKenna, a commissioner with the Fair Work Commission. Despite being notified of the prospective loss to McKenna, Henderson continued to advise she should transfer her retirement savings to a self-managed super fund to be managed by Henderson Maxwell.The Royal Commission also heard damning evidence that included audio recordings of a Henderson Maxwell employee impersonating Ms McKenna in phone calls made to her public sector superannuation funds.McKenna filed a complaint against Henderson to the Financial Planning Association of Australia that resulted in a string of adverse findings against him after the FPA concluded he had committed breaches of the association's ethics and practice standards.The FPA has not yet published details of the breaches, despite having received McKenna's complaint in March 2017. Henderson asked the FPA to keep the adverse findings confidential.The Royal Commission also established that a financial services guide issued to clients by Henderson Maxwell contained misleading information about Henderson's professional qualifications.Under questioning from Rowena Orr QC, Henderson revealed that he did not hold a Master of Commerce degree even though clients were told that he did in 2016.The Henderson Maxwell business is listed on AZ Next Generation Advisory's website as a subsidiary practice following the December transaction.The deal appears to have been completed, with ASIC records showing a company known as Henderson Maxwell No.2 Pty Ltd operating as a subsidiary of the Barrett-run company.Under the terms of the sale deal announced on 11 December, AZ Next Generation Advisory said it was acquiring the assets of Henderson Maxwell in return for cash and shares.Barrett indicated at the time that his company would look to take advantage of Henderson Maxwell's business model."Henderson Maxwell have developed a highly sophisticated ecosystem that we are looking forward to leveraging," he said at the time.The reputational crisis engulfing Henderson Maxwell could potentially unsettle AZ Next Generation