As businesses grapple with increasingly complex and interconnected risks, from climate-related disruptions to geopolitical instability and supply chain fragility, the search for flexible and cost-effective risk management solutions has never been more pressing. The use of captive insurance vehicles as a mechanism for alternative risk transfer is well established, offering corporates a powerful tool to
On 30 July 2026, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) published rule changes that are designed to simplify compliance and enhance corporate transparency by increasing investor visibility of who ultimately owns, controls or has significant economic exposure to entities listed on Australian financial markets.
Background
The changes follow Consultation Paper 387 Enhanced
On 30 July 2026, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) set out its approach to increasing the net tangible assets (NTA) requirement for responsible entities of registered managed investment schemes following Consultation Paper 388 Net tangible assets requirement for responsible entities (CP 388).
Background
Responsible entities of registered
On 27 July 2026, the Australian Treasury issued for consultation an exposure draft of regulations that extend the class exemptions to the deferred sales model (DSM) for add-on insurance until 2031. Furthermore, the Australian Treasury is seeking input on whether any new class exemptions should be granted.
Background
The DSM is set out
On 16 July 2026, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) both published updated Statements of Intent outlining how they will achieve their objectives, carry out their responsibilities and exercise their powers. APRA’s Statement of Intent also reaffirms APRA’s commitment to being
On 21 July 2026, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) issued a targeted report on the regulatory challenges from decentralised finance (DeFi).
Background
In 2019, the FATF updated Recommendation15 and extended the application of the FATF Standards to virtual assets (VAs) and virtual asset service providers (VASPs).
On 7 July 2026, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) finalised its amendments to the general insurance (GI) reinsurance framework.
Background
The final changes are set out in APRA’s response paper following two rounds of consultation that took place in November 2024 and October 2025. The purpose of the reforms are
On 7 July 2026, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) issued a new legislative instrument for operators of investor directed portfolio services (IDPS) and IDPS-like schemes.
Background
The new legislative instrument follows an earlier consultation that ASIC conducted on the proposed simplification of the platform instruments in Report 813 Regulatory
On 30 June 2026, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) published the findings of its inaugural System Risk Stress Test (SRST), which focused on links between the banking and superannuation system. The SRST took place last year and covered four major banks and six large superannuation funds and examined how a
On 29 June 2026, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) issued a consultation paper, Getting the balance right on financial resilience – Workstream 1: Credit risk capital.
The consultation paper follows APRA’s previous commitment to consult on reforms to bank capital and liquidity settings. It is the first of three work steams