On 8 May, APRA released its answers to some ‘frequently asked questions’ about the Protecting Your Super changes. I would politely suggest that the questions asked and answered by APRA make up a fairly small subset of the questions that are, in fact, being asked (in some cases very frequently) about the PYS changes. Even so, I would like to say something about some of APRA’s answers.

The English High Court has handed down its judgment on the first major case following the global regulatory investigations into alleged LIBOR manipulation.

The Australian Bankers’ Association last year commissioned Stephen Sedgwick to undertake a review of remuneration in retail banking.

Earlier today, Treasury released exposure draft regulations for ‘Innovative Superannuation Income Streams’. They set out income stream standards that will be relevant for products such as deferred annuities and group self-annuitised products. The Allens Superannuation team reports.

The Commonwealth Treasury is seeking feedback on how to kickstart social impact investment in Australia.

Treasurer Scott Morrison this week announced that he has tasked the Productivity Commission to review the state of competition in Australia’s financial system. The Budget has also included other measures focused on competition in the financial sector, including funding to establish a dedicated ACCC unit to undertake regular inquiries into specific financial system competition issues, an ACCC inquiry into residential mortgage pricing, and an open banking regime. The Government has also announced the introduction of a Banking Executive Accountability Regime. These measures follow a series of recent reviews and inquiries into the financial services industry. Partner Carolyn Oddie and Senior Associate Lisa Lucak report.

ASIC has recently released a report about its work with the big four banks and AMP on adviser misconduct. The report is essentially an update on the progress of ASIC’s Wealth Management Project, and mostly contains information we already know. The most interesting part deals with the results of ASIC’s review of adviser audit processes by the banks and AMP. They indicate that internal audits are not identifying compliance issues.

The financial services sector has been under scrutiny for some time with many different voices clamouring for further regulation or inquiries in a sector that is already highly regulated. The recent Federal Budget included a number of measures focused on the state of competition in the financial system, and provided a road map for a significant amount of activity over the next few years. Partner Carolyn Oddie reports.

The 2017 Budget included proposals intended to ‘reduce pressure on housing affordability’. Two of them use the superannuation system to do so: the ‘First Home Super Saver Scheme’ and the ‘Reducing Barriers to Downsizing’ proposal. Partner Michelle Levy examines the schemes in more detail.

As part of its ongoing efforts to improve the domestic banking sector’s accountability, the Federal Government recently announced a series of measures to join the ongoing global push seeking to improve measures for individual accountability for misconduct. The proposed Banking Executives Accountability Regime (BEAR) seeks to ensure that banks, and their senior management, are held accountable when they fail to meet expectations. Senior Associate Sarah Burgemeister reports.

Australian boards and senior executives are expected to maintain oversight of risk and compliance issues including bribery, sanctions, human rights and anti-money laundering. In-house counsel perform a central role in supporting this oversight and maintaining compliance. In the fourth of a five-part series, Partner Peter Haig and Associates Andrew Shetliffe and Glyn Ayres look at the key questions that Australian boards and senior executives should be asking about anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing in 2017.

The Federal Government’s proposed new superannuation legislation imposes significant new obligations on RSE licensees and could have a material effect on shareholders. The Allens Superannuation team reports on the key changes.

ASIC Report 529: Member experience of superannuation, released just a day before the Productivity Commission officially sets its sights on assessing the state of the superannuation system, serves as a timely reminder of the ever-increasing expectations of the conduct and disclosure practices of superannuation trustees.

ASIC often looks to overseas regulators for inspiration. So when a particularly influential regulator publishes a comprehensive report about a large segment of its regulated population, including possible new areas for regulation, it can pay to take note because it may be a guide to the future direction of Australian regulation.

ASIC continues its mission to enhance the regulation of Australia’s equity markets, with its recent publication of Consultation Paper 290 on managing conflicts of interest when dealing with sell-side research and corporate advisory. The proposed amendments will primarily target investment banks and corporate advisers in the IPO and capital raising process.

The exposure draft of the Financial Sector Legislation Amendment (Crisis Resolution Powers and Other Measures) Bill 2017, will, if passed, give new powers to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority in relation to the authorised non-operating holding company and other related bodies corporate of APRA-regulated entities (including foreign regulated entities).

With all the media attention on the Government’s surprise announcement of its proposed package on improving accountability and member outcomes in super last week, you would be forgiven if the Productivity Commission’s latest issues paper on competitiveness and efficiency in the super system had slipped under your radar.

The FoFA duties that apply to personal advice given to retail clients have been operating for over four years now. ASIC has enjoyed some recent success in the courts in cases brought on the basis of those duties. In this context, it is worth revisiting approved product lists and whether they assist, or impair, compliance with the FoFA duties.

Australia’s lack of enforcement of foreign bribery legislation has attracted increasing criticism in recent years, but the Federal Government is expected to soon table legislation proposing wide-ranging reforms. We look at two key proposed changes for Australian companies.

The Federal Government has released the exposure draft of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Banking Executive Accountability and Related Measures) Bill, together with a draft Explanatory Memoradum. This follows on from the release of the Banking Executive Accountability Regime (BEAR) consultation paper in July which raised eyebrows with its short three-week consultation period. The exposure draft only provides five working days for interested parties to lodge a submission. This is a clear indication of the Government’s desire to implement BEAR swiftly. Partner Michelle Levy and Senior Associates Sarah Burgemeister and Brenton Pollard report.