Finder (ASIC): ASIC has commenced civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against Finder Wallet Pty Ltd, for allegedly providing unlicensed financial services, breaching product disclosure
FTX (Regulation): The digital assets world has been rocked by the liquidity run on FTX the week, the world’s second largest exchange, and the near buyout by Binance, the world’s largest exchange. While there are various reasons being put forward for the issues facing FTX, in a febrile…
ASIC inquiry (Parliament):On 27 October 2022, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services began an inquiry into ASICs capacity and capability to respond to reports of alleged misconduct. The committee will call for written submissions in due course…
Financial Accountability Regime (Parliament): As expected, the Senate Committee examining the reintroduced FAR bill has give it the tick of approval, stating, “The committee is of the view that accountability measures, such as the existence of banning powers and deferred remuneration arrangements,…
Crypto Stop Orders (ASIC): ASIC has just issued an interim stop order on Holon (its tenth to date), which offers various crypto funds to retail investors, on the basis that it thinks that Holon has not appropriately considered the features and risks of the funds in determining their target markets…
FAR & Breach Reporting (ASIC): I attended the Credit Law Conference earlier in the week, where ASIC Commissioner Sean Hughes provided an update on the Financial Accountability Regime (FAR) and breach reporting. My key notes are: – the Financial Accountability Regime Bill 2022…
Crypto Report (Parliament): I have now spent a bit of time on the new crypto bill. By way of reminder, on 19 September 2022, Senator Andrew Bragg released a draft private members bill, entitled the Digital Assets (Market Regulation) Bill 2022 (the Bill). Under the Bill, a licence is required to carry out the following activities in Australia…
Remediation Plan (ASIC): ASIC has released its new remediation guidance, RG 277. Mandatory reading for anyone who deals with breach reporting, and fixing the problems that arise up, RG 277: clarifies nine principles for conducting a remediation, which will help licensees comply with their obligations and conduct…
Licensing update (ASIC): I attended an ASIC licensing update earlier in the week, and it was fascinating! My notes are in my weekly newsletter, which you can access here (reach out to me if you wish to be on the emailing list). The resourcing, consistency and strategy of the division was discussed, together with other matters…
FAR (Parliament): The FAR bill is in Parliament, and is likely to pass in the Spring sitting which ends in December 2022. See here for details. The Government is now seeking stakeholder views on the Minister Rules. The Minister Rules prescribe…
FAR (Parliament): IT. IS. FINALLY. HERE. AND. I. AM. EXCITED! This week, the Federal Government introduced the Financial Accountability Regime Bill 2022 (Cth). The bill reintroduces the Financial Accountability Regime Bill 2021 (Cth), which was introduced by the previous Government but lapsed with the calling…
FAR (ASIC): Information from an ASIC session with the Chair and Commissioners this week in which I took the following notes. FAR will be passed in Spring sitting. It will come into effect for ADIs in March 2023. It will come into effect for Super / Insurers in March 2024. Finally, there is lots of work going on in the background…
Token Mapping (Treasury): The Government has announced that Treasury will prioritise token mapping work in 2022, which will help identify how crypto assets and related services should be regulated. The aim will be to identify notable gaps in the regulatory framework, and progress work on a licensing framework,…
AG Priorities (Government): The meeting of the Federal and State Attorney-Generals has occurred with them setting out their common reform priorities. Not much from a financial services regulatory perspective. They continue to focus on defamation, access to digital records upon death/incapacitation and national register for enduring POAs…
Corporate Plan (APRA): APRA’s new Corporate Plan for 2022/2023 is based around the twin themes of protecting the community today, as well as ensuring the Australian financial system is prepared for tomorrow. The plan is designed to respond to rapid changes in APRA’s operating environment,…
CSLR (ASIC): Such an interesting time for updates from the corporate regulator, who has advised that “Former clients of Dixon Advisory and Superannuation Services Pty Limited (in administration, Dixon Advisory) may be eligible for compensation under a potential future Compensation Scheme of Last Resort but they…
DDO (ASIC): MASSIVE news this week on the AISC enforcement front. It has placed interim stop orders on three financial firms in response to deficiencies in the target market determination for their products. These actions are ASIC’s first use of the stop order powers under the design and distribution obligations,…
FATCA/CRS (ATO): The ATO has issued a self-review guide and toolkit on the internal processes and systems that reporting financial institutions should maintain to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act and the Common Reporting Standard, which has been something of a focus for it in preceding years…
Conflicted Remuneration (ASIC): In Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Select AFSL Pty Ltd (No 2) [2022] FCA 786, the Federal Court of Australia held that conflicted remunerations contraventions took place for the Respondent, Select AFSL. Select AFSL was part of a corporate group structure which retailed…
Lanterne (ASIC): ASIC has commenced civil penalty proceedings against Lanterne Fund Services, alleging multiple failures to meet the obligations of its AFSL, including a failure to meet organisational competence requirements. It alleges Lanterne, under a licensee for hire business model e.g. under Corporate Authorised Representative…
Threshold Transaction Reports (AUSTRAC): AUSTRAC has released updated guidance on reporting threshold transaction reports when a customer conducts multiple cash transactions, following industry consultation on the draft guidance released in November 2021. A reporting entity providing…
Cyber Safety (ASIC): ASIC has urged listed firms to pay attention to cyber risks, noting World Economic Forum released its annual Global Risks Report 2022 and failure of cyber security measures was the number one risk for Australian executives. ASIC’s December 2021 resilience…
Crypto Legislation (US): I am not sure what is happening in the US with leaked documents recently, but the WSJ has leaked the draft crypto legislation which you can readhere. A dense document it is US legislation after all some of the key points are: the bill is centered around the terms digital asset…
AFSL Auditing (ASIC): ASIC has announced new financial reporting requirements for AFSL holders, following changes to the accounting standards. AFSL holders financial reports must now contain disclosures consistent with the financial reports of other for-profit entities, prepared under standards set by the AASB…
Federal ICAC (Election): the election is over, and the red team has formed a majority Government. Importantly, the main election promise Labor has made on integrity is to establish what it says will be a “powerful, transparent and independent National Anti-Corruption Commission.”…
Prudential Perspectives (APRA): Chair Wayne Byres has identified digital disruption, and the emergence of higher inflation and rising interest rates as key impacts affecting the banking industry in a speech to FINSIA. He also identified that common theme that increasingly pervades all three sectors of the industry…
Breach Reporting (Research): Independent research commissioned by Gadens and Lawcadia on the enhanced AFSL/ACL breach reporting regime has been released this week. In summary, this research reveals: a marked increased in breach reporting for AFSL and ACL holders; a suggestion…
Litigation Funding Schemes (ASIC): ASIC has extended the relief from certain dollar disclosures in PDS’s for litigation funding schemes in ASIC Corporations (Disclosure in Dollars) Instrument 2016/767 until 1 October 2026. Relief has been extended by ASIC Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2022/264…
Crypto regulation (Treasury): the Treasury has released its consultation paper onCrypto asset secondary service providers: Licensing and custody requirements(Consultation Paper) raising 32 consultation questions in relation to crypto licensing and custody requirements…
CDR Extension (Treasury): In January 2022, the Government announced that the Consumer Data Right (CDR) would expand to Open Finance as the next sector to be assessed. A massive step for the financial services industry, phase 1 of Open Finance will include the assessment and designation of the non-bank lending sector…
Youpla Group (ASIC): Very unusual. Following the liquidation of one funeral fund, ASIC has written to the directors of Youpla Group to ask them to take immediate and public action to address concerns about the financial viability of ACBF 1, ACBF Plan and ACBF Community. Youpla manages four entities that…
Advice Update (ASIC): ASIC has released a consultation paper setting out its proposals to update Regulatory Guide 263 Financial Services and Credit Panel (RG 263) to reflect legislative changes in the Financial Sector Reform (Hayne Royal Commission Response Better Advice) Act 2021…
Ransomware (Parliament): On 17 February 2022, the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Ransomware Action Plan) Bill 2022 was introduced into the House. The bill amends the Criminal Code Act 1995, the Crimes Act 1914 and the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to updated criminal offences and procedures…
FAR (Senate Report): The Senate Economics Legislation Committee has completed its report into the Financial Accountability Regime Bill 2021. The Committee has recommended that the bills be passed, complete with civil penalties introduced in the FAR regime (despite appreciable lobbying to the contrary)…
APRA priorities (APRA): The prudential regulator has released its policy and supervision priorities for the next 12 to 18 months. Policy priorities for 2022 include: a major multi-year initiative to modernise its prudential architecture; improving crisis preparedness, including finalising two new prudential standards…
Electronic Surveillance Laws (Home Affairs): The Government has released the Reform of Australia’s electronic surveillance framework discussion paper. The discussion paper seeks early views to inform the development of a new framework, and provides an overview of how the Government proposes to reform Australia’s…
Exchange Traded Products (ASIC): ASIC has released Consultation Paper 356 ETP naming conventions: Updates to INFO 230 (CP 356), seeking feedback on proposals to update the guidance in Information Sheet 230 Exchange-traded products: Admission guidelines (INFO 230), on naming conventions for licensed…
Liquidity Facility (APRA): APRA has issued a letter to banks announcing the aggregate Committed Liquidity Facility has reduced to $102 billion on 1 January 2022 from $140 billion on 10 September 2021.Since January 2015, those ADIs to which APRA applies the Basel III liquidity standards have…
Litigation funding (Parliament):the report of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services intoLitigation funding and the regulation of the class action industryhas been released. A scathing report, which agreed that the current regulatory overlay of the sector is too light, it contains some major recommendations…
Insolvency laws (Treasury):the major insolvency law changes proposed as part of the Federal Budget have passed Parliament. The legislation introduces a new, simplified debt restructuring process that can be accessed by small businesses experiencing distress. This process draws on key features of the Chapter 11 bankruptcy…
Consumer remediation (ASIC):ASIC has released a consultation paper on proposed updates toRegulatory Guide 256:Client review and remediation conducted by advice licensees. Consultation Paper 335Consumer Remediation: Update to RG 256(CP 335) includes clarification of RG 256s application to all financial services licensees…
ASIC v Youi (ASIC):theFederal Court has declaredYoui Pty Ltd (Youi) breached its duty of utmost good faith under theInsurance Contracts Actin its handling of a building and contents insurance claim lodged by a policyholder. Following a severe hailstorm in Broken Hill in November 2016, the policyholder made a claim to Youi…
Commonwealth Integrity Commission (Treasury):the Government has committed $147 million to the development and operation of a Commonwealth Integrity Commission (CIC). The process has already started with the expansion of the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity (ACLEI)…
Share transfers (ASIC):ASIC has released updated regulatory guidance to formalise its policy on when it will give Chapter 6 relief for share transfers under s444GA of the Corporations Act. Section 444GA allows shares of a company in administration to be transferred by an administrator as part of a deed of company arrangement…
Shipton & Crennan (ASIC):ASICs Chairman will temporarily step aside after it was revealed ASIC paid more than $118,000 for him to receive personal tax advice. Mr. Shipton has agreed to repay the money for the advice, which he received after he relocated to Australia from the United States to head up ASIC in 2018…
ASIC v. VW (ASIC):ASIC has settled its claim against Volkswagen Financial Services Australia Pty Limited (VW), discontinuing its Federal Court proceeding and accepting a Court Enforceable Undertaking (CEU) from the car financier big congrats to my colleague Kathy Merrick in Sydney on this one! ASIC had alleged…
Responsible lending:following ASICs release of itsconsultation paperin February 2019 in respect of updating its guidance on responsible lending (RG 209), ASIC announced that it intends to hold public hearings concerned with responsible lending practices (a prominent theme in the recent Hayne Royal Commission)…
Use our RegFrac SOLUTIONS page to learn how you can tokenise your financial services business and create more efficient products.
Learn about our Reg AI Tool and Search Function
Access our Privacy Policy to see how your information is managed.
