On 16 December 2025, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) updated Regulatory Guide 181 AFS Licensing: Managing Conflicts of Interest (RG 181) following an earlier consultation process (CP 385).
Background
Section 912A(1)(aa) of the Corporations Act 2001 (the Act) provides that Australian financial services (AFS) licensees must have adequate arrangements in place to effectively manage all conflicts of interest, except those that occur wholly outside a financial services business.
RG 181 explains the legal obligations under the Act for AFS licensees having adequate arrangements to manage conflicts of interest. It includes guidance on identifying conflicts, what adequate arrangements involve, and effective conflicts management through a range of tools.
The updated RG 181 replaces the version issued in August 2004 and is part of ASIC’s ongoing regulatory maintenance and simplification agenda. The management of conflicts of interest was also raised as an area requiring further clarification in a number of submissions to ASIC’s discussion paper on the evolving dynamics in public and private markets and was a compliance issue identified in ASIC’s private credit surveillance report (REP 820). The issuance of the updated RG 181 was outlined as a deliverable in ASIC’s roadmap and released as part of its response to the discussion paper in November (REP 823).
Key updates
Key updates to RG 181 include guidance in relation to:
- How the law applies to conflicts of interest, including the scope of the conflicts management obligation and links to other related obligations.
- The types of conflicts AFS licensees should identify and manage.
- The need for robust, tailored arrangements to manage conflicts.
- Practical steps for effective conflict management.
- A non-exhaustive ‘catalogue’ of related legal obligations and information.