Regulatory Updates

The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (“AFCA”) has received its first report card since it commenced operations on 1 November 2018. …

The following items were open for consultation in February 2022:

Education Standards for Financial Advisers Policy Paper.  This Policy …

ASIC and RBA update MOU with European Securities and Markets Authority

ASIC and the RBA have updated the Memorandum of …

AUSTRAC has ordered the appointment of an external auditor to three entities within the Bell Financial Group under section 162(2) …

FATF has updated its consolidated list of ML/TF country assessment ratings, which assesses the effectiveness and technical compliance of countries …

AUSTRAC has released a new financial crime guide, Detecting and Stopping Forced Sexual Servitude in Australia, which is aimed …

ASIC has extended relief for simple arrangements following a hardship notice.  The relief, which was due to expire on 1 …

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal has endorsed and extended a decision by ASIC to ban a former Victorian mortgage broker permanently …

A former mortgage broker has pleaded guilty to making a false statement in a credit licence annual compliance certificate lodged …

In a sign that the fall-out from fees for no service practices is not yet over, the Federal Court has …

The Federal Court has handed down penalties for RI Advice Group Pty Ltd and its authorised representative and adviser, John …

The proposed extension of the AFSL regime to more proxy advice activities has been stopped only days after it came …

New relief released by ASIC maintains certainty that the quote stage of the sales process for general insurance products can …

Licensees providing claims handling and settling services can now take advantage of relief issued by ASIC in relation to Cash …

The Federal Court of Australia has confirmed that AFCA may, under in its general jurisdiction, consider a complaint lodged by …

As well as establishing the new framework for the corporate collective investment vehicle, the Corporate Collective Investment Vehicle Framework and …

The legislation establishing the framework for the corporate collective investment vehicle (CCIV) has been passed by Parliament has received Royal …

ASIC has released its findings from a high-level review of governance practices of 10 large responsible entities of managed investment …

A recent Administrative Appeals Tribunal decision is a reminder that personal implications for breaches of financial services laws remains a …

Recent developments in the area of the Consumer Data Right include a Government review and some guidance from the Office …

The passage of recent legislation makes permanent changes that were temporarily introduced towards the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, in …

As usual, the latest hearing of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services provided some interesting insights into …

ASIC provided an update on its key activities in the last quarter of 2021, in Report 717 ASIC quarterly update: …

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner has released the latest Notifiable Data Breaches Report.

The Report covers the …

While the Australian Law Reform Commission continues its work into the Review of the Legislative Framework for Corporations and Financial …

A recent article from APRA, How to manage compliance risk and stay out of the headlines, is useful reading …

The Government has introduced into Parliament the Treasury Laws Amendment (Enhancing Tax Integrity and Supporting Business Investment) Bill 2022. …

In a previous article we looked at various regulatory issues and concerns which have arisen with the current legal definitions …

The following items were open for consultation in January 2022:

Privacy Act Review Discussion Paper.  This Discussion Paper seeks …

Annual update on APRA-ASIC engagement

APRA and ASIC have released their Annual update on APRA-ASIC engagement.  The update gives …

Transparency International is a global not-for-profit, which describes itself as a global coalition against corruption.  Each year, it publishes the …

AUSTRAC has highlighted several new AML/CTF resources published by the Egmont Group, which describes its purpose as enabling international financial …

It is again time to submit your Annual Compliance Report, which is due by 31 March 2022. AUSTRAC has issued …

ASIC has released a news item noting that it has seen an increase in marketing which encourages people to switch …

BGC Partners (Australia) Pty Ltd has paid a penalty of $110,250 to comply with an infringement notice given by the …

Market participants taking advantage of the exemption from having to provide a confirmation to a wholesale client for a market …

ASIC has released information regarding how and when it will issue warnings or reprimands or make referrals to the Financial …

The recent cancellation of a licence by ASIC is a reminder of what is really important for advice licensees and …

FASEA ceased to exist at the end of December 2021.

Guides and publications released by FASEA during its existence can …

Late in December, ASIC released guidance for tax (financial) advisers.  The guidance is in the form of Information Sheet 268 …

After action commenced by ASIC, the Federal Court has imposed penalties of $4 million on Statewide Superannuation Pty Ltd. …

Misleading or deceptive conduct and false or misleading representations are regularly the subject of ASIC action or Court findings.  This …

The AFS licensing regime will be extended to cover more proxy advice activities under regulations made by the Government. …

While it is a great skill to delegate work to more junior staff, it is an even greater skill to …

ASIC is consulting in relation to the remaking of relief for business introduction services.

ASIC has, for many years, provided …

Treasury has conducted a Strategic Assessment of the Consumer Data Right and produced a Report.  This was a rapid, …

The bundle of legislation establishing the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort and the Financial Accountability Regime has been referred by …

With the recent commencement of the design and distribution regime, product issuers were required to comply with the new requirements …

The following items were open for consultation in December 2021:

Consultation Paper Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics 2019 …

Deadline extension for unlisted entity financial reports

ASIC made ASIC Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2021/976 which amends ASIC Corporations (Extended Reporting …