The month of November saw a flurry of regulatory activity by APRA and ASIC across strategic focus areas: crypto-asset regulation, enforcement of design and distribution obligations, reforming operational risk requirements for super funds and improving governance practices across the superannuation industry at investment and board levels. Meanwhile, AUSTRAC launched two consultations on proposed changes and guidance to Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regime.

ASIC and APRA have both made keynote addresses to the Senate Economics Legislation Committee, which have confirmed that their focus is on emerging business risks, which encompasses climate risk disclosure, the emerging threat of malicious large scale cyber-attacks, and operational risk deficiencies at an industry wide level.

Notably, APRA has announced its intention to consolidate the regulatory framework on successor fund transfer (SFT) planning, which comes following increased consolidation activity in the sector as underperforming funds enter into SFTs and exit the industry. Streamlining the regulatory requirements for SFT planning builds on APRA’s existing initiatives to “modernise” the prudential framework and to consolidate the prudential standards relating to operational risk.

Read the full update here