On 1 April 2026, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Genetic Testing Protections in Life Insurance and Other Measures) Bill 2026 (Bill) was passed by both houses of parliament. The Bill introduces a legislative framework for exemptions from the requirement to hold an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) for foreign financial services providers (FFSPs). Under section 911A […]
The Federal Court of Australia has ordered Oztures Trading Pty Ltd, trading as Binance Australia Derivatives, to pay a $10 million civil penalty following proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in relation to failures in its client onboarding processes. The Court found that Binance Australia Derivatives had incorrectly classified a significant […]
NTA levels set to increase ASIC’s Consultation Paper 388 Net tangible assets requirement for responsible entities (CP 388) signals a likely uplift in capital requirements for responsible entities (REs) in the retail funds management sector. It also points to the beginning of a broader review that could eventually extend to wholesale trustees. For some fund […]
The Full Federal Court’s decision in The Property Mentors Australia Pty Ltd v Touch for Health Pty Ltd as trustee for Knight Superannuation Fund should be read closely by directors who approve or circulate information memoranda for property trusts and other investment vehicles. The Property Mentors and the Secret Harbour Unit Trust The Property Mentors […]
The Senate Economics Legislation Committee (Committee) has endorsed the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025 (Digital Assets Bill), which is formal regulatory regime for digital asset platforms. Overview of the proposed framework As previously discussed in our article about the introduction of the Digital Assets Bill into Parliament (see link here), the Digital Assets […]
The Supreme Court of New South Wales has ordered Macquarie Securities (Australia) Limited (MSAL) to pay a $35 million civil penalty following proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in relation to failures in its short sale reporting systems. The Court found that MSAL had incorrectly reported millions of short sale transactions […]
New licensing framework for PSPs The new proposed regulatory framework for payment service providers (PSPs) operating in Australia has now been released. The new laws build on previous consultations on draft legislation — see our article on those measure here: ‘New exposure draft legislation released for the regulation of non-cash payment providers’. Under the proposed […]
Under the amended Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Act) and the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules 2025 (Rules), the reforms commencing 31 March 2026 embed governance and oversight obligations on reporting entities and require those obligations to be reflected in the AML/CTF program. AML/CTF compliance can no longer operate solely as a […]
From 31 March 2026, the amended Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Act) and the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Rules 2025 (Rules) impose explicit statutory requirements in relation to the AML/CTF compliance officer role. For many reporting entities, the AML/CTF compliance officer has historically operated as a functional compliance contact. Under the reformed […]
Treasury has released a consultation paper, Enhancing oversight and governance of managed investment schemes, seeking feedback on a suite of reforms aimed at lifting governance standards and strengthening ASIC’s oversight of the retail managed investment scheme (MIS) sector. The policy direction in brief The reforms follow the collapse of several high-profile schemes and reflect a […]