Australia
ASIC gives further relief for licensees under the reportable situations regime
ASIC has provided Australian financial services and credit licensees additional targeted relief under the reportable situations regime in response to feedback from industry.
The reportable situations regime requires licensees to promptly identify, fix and report potential misconduct. According to ASIC, compliance with the regime can help lift industry standards and in turn improve consumer outcomes. The regime also aims to increase regulatory intelligence for ASIC.
ASIC reported that the new relief:
- exempts industry from reporting certain breaches of the misleading and deceptive conduct provisions, and certain contraventions of civil penalties;
- broadens the types of reports that are exempt, by increasing (i) the time allowed for rectification (from when the breach first occurred) from 30 days to 60 days, (ii) the number of impacted customers from five to 10, and (iii) the total financial loss or damage to consumers from $500 to $1000; and
- clarifies that a report is taken to be lodged with ASIC, if a licensee has submitted a breach report to APRA that contains all the information APRA has requested.
ASIC's view is that the relief reduces the reporting burden on industry while upholding the objectives of the regime, noting that more substantial changes to the legislative framework are a matter for Government. [27 Jun 2025]
APRA shines light on retirement product performance
APRA has published data on superannuation retirement products for the first time. In APRA's view, the performance of retirement products is vital to the retirement incomes received by Australians. APRA's intention is that the new data will increases transparency regarding investment returns, fees and costs, and investment strategies at a product level.
The publication captures key performance data for 600 multi-sector investment options where the trustee sets the investment strategy or manages the investments. The key data includes a breakdown of product fee structures, investment strategies and associated strategic asset allocations. The data is provided as a product level and fund level.
APRA has said that it will provide quarterly insights on retirement products data going forward. [26 Jun 2025]
APRA releases letter to RSE licensees
After previously advising Registrable Superannuation Entity (RSE) licensees that it would be intensifying scrutiny of fund-level expenditure to support better outcomes for members, APRA has released a letter to RSE licensees setting out initial observations, examples of better practice, and areas for improvement to support compliance with legal duties and to achieve better outcomes for members.
The observations relate to (1) decision-making, (2) expenditure management frameworks, and (3) monitoring and reporting, and were informed by a process in which APRA collated information from 14 RSE licensees of varying sizes, relating to discretionary expenditure, marketing and connected entity spending.
APRA has said it will continue to monitor fund-level expenditure as part of ongoing supervision. [24 Jun 2025]
ASIC Commissioner shines light of regulatory priorities in financial advice
ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland delivered a keynote address at an industry summit, discussing ASIC's priorities in financial advice.
From ASIC's point of view, the key points were as follows:
- One of the greatest risks to investors that ASIC is seeing is high-pressure sales practices that lure Australians into investments that are not in their financial interests. Licensees have a role in preventing misconduct and, where concerning conduct is detected, they must report it to ASIC.
- Licensees must ensure relevant providers are properly qualified to provide financial advice from the start of 2026.
- ASIC is reviewing how well investment managers and financial advisers are managing the potential risks of offshore outsourcing, reminding licenses that their regulatory obligations remain regardless of whether functions are conducted locally or overseas. [23 Jun 2025]
ASIC warns industry and consumers of share sale fraud
ASIC has updated guidance for Australian financial services (AFS) licensees about how they can reduce share sale fraud risks to their clients and business. ASIC reported that this follows a spike in reports of stolen shares due to identity theft and an industry review.
ASIC defines share sale fraud as the fraudulent activity of a person who is not who they claim to be, selling or transferring shares that do not belong to them.
The updated Information Sheet 237 Protecting against share sale fraud includes observations on share sale fraud methods by bad actors and better practices for licensee prevention and detection. The topics covered include client onboarding, ongoing due diligence, intermediary clients, periodic reviews and testing, AML/CTF training, and reporting suspicious matters. The 'better practices' outlined in the guidance include:
- being alert to possible use of stock images, fakes, forgeries, and independently verifying their authenticity when onboarding new clients;
- monitoring trading behaviour and conducting additional due diligence where trading is unusual for a client, a client makes large withdrawal requests or newly opened accounts are observed; and
- conducting further due diligence when clients add or request changes to personal information such as postal/email addresses and bank accounts, including, where possible, checking that bank accounts are held in the client's name. [24 Jun 2025]
ASIC issues infringement notices to Equity Trustees for misleading statements
Equity Trustees Limited has paid $56,340 to comply with three infringement notices issued by ASIC. In the notices, ASIC alleged that Equity Trustees, as the responsible entity of the Artesian Green and Sustainable Bond Fund, made misleading statements about the fund's investments. The notices are published on the infringement notices register.
ASIC reported that between 10 April 2024 and 7 November 2024, the fund's product disclosure statement, target market determination and website stated that the fund invested in green, sustainable and social corporate bonds issued by companies. However, at that time, the fund had significant exposure to government and supranational bonds (not issued by corporations), which were inconsistent with its declared strategy and objectives.
Equity Trustees paid the infringement notices on 13 June 2025. Payment of an infringement notice is not an admission of guilt or liability. [19 Jun 2025]
ASIC commences action over alleged failure to ensure retail investors were in the relevant target market
ASIC has commenced proceedings against a funds management company alleging that it failed to take reasonable steps to ensure that retail investors were in the target market of its ‘Select Income Fund' between 2021 and 2023.
ASIC specifically alleges that while retail investors were given a questionnaire to determine whether they were in the fund's target market, the responses were not reviewed until August 2023 and the company did not use the answers to screen customers until 6 October 2023.
The company has issued a statement that it has assisted ASIC throughout its investigation and remains focused on continuing to offer retail investors access to varied investment opportunities. [11 Jun 2025]
BNPL Products now subject to AFCA dispute resolution
From 10 June 2025, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) products are regulated under the National Credit Act and subject to dispute resolution through the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
BNPL providers now must:
- be an AFCA member;
- obtain an Australian Credit Licence; and
- offer internal dispute resolution processes to customers. [10 Jun 2025]
ASIC grants limited no-action position for deficient advice fee written consents
ASIC has granted a limited no-action position in response to a specific issue raised by the advice industry about the inclusion of account numbers in a client's written consent for the deduction, or arranging of the deduction, of ongoing advice fees.
ASIC does not intend to take action for breach of s 962S of the Corporations Act 2001 or s 99FA of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 where written consent was given by a client for the fee recipient to deduct fees under an ongoing fee arrangement (OFA) from 10 January 2025 until 5 September 2025, an account number was not included in the consent, and a trustee deducted from the relevant member's account the advice fees as set out in the account (in the case of superannuation).
This no-action does not prevent an OFA terminating under s 962WA or third parties from taking legal action. [6 Jun 2025]
ASIC shares industry feedback and next steps in response to discussion paper on public and private markets
ASIC has published an update on feedback to its discussion paper issued in February 2025, which looked at the evolving relationships between public and private markets in Australia, the projected future of Australia's capital markets, and growth of private markets and decline in public listings. Various industry stakeholders, including superannuation trustees, fund managers, and market operators, responded, and ASIC identified a consensus that both market types should thrive together.
Key themes distilled from the feedback received include:
- structural and cyclical factors are shaping both public and private markets;
- public market adjustments would improve and enhance their attractiveness;
- as private markets are here to stay and grow, regulatory guidance should to be measured and developed in collaboration with industry and in alignment with international standards;
- private credit contributes to the economy; there may be work to do to ensure it is sustainably done well;
- superannuation is a mature investment force in Australia and a significant and structural influence in markets and investment; and
- there is more to do on data collection and transparency of private markets.
ASIC Chair, Joe Longo, assured stakeholders that ASIC is committed to carefully considering the feedback received. The regulator will announce the adoption of some of the proposed actionable ideas and will share its roadmaps for public and private markets in Q3 and Q4, respectively. [4 Jun 2025]
ASIC warns AFS licensees to check relevant information ahead of Financial Services Register
ASIC is encouraging providers and their authorizing Australian financial services (AFS) licensees to immediately verify all details on the Financial Advisers Register, ahead of the compliance deadline set for 1 January 2026.
ASIC also recommends AFS licensees:
- check relevant providers' authorisation history to ensure it is accurate;
- confirm that relevant providers meet the definition of an ‘existing provider' if they intend to meet the qualifications standard;
- notify ASIC after confirming the relevant providers meet the eligibility criteria;
- notify ASIC after confirming relevant providers have completed the prescribed courses; and
- ensure the relevant providers' contact details are correct. [3 Jun 2025]
ASIC review of compliance plans of registered managed investment schemes
ASIC's review of compliance plans for registered managed investment schemes has revealed significant inadequacies. ASIC has published guidance to assist these entities in addressing their compliance obligations.
The review focused on three main regulatory obligations:
- reportable situations;
- product design and distribution obligations; and
- internal dispute resolution processes.
ASIC urges entities to consider their compliance plans in light of eight questions which it has set out and in light of the findings from ASIC's review. [3 Jun 2025]
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