Welcome to the latest issue of the KHQ Super Alert. This week, an ASIC instrument amending IDR reporting obligations was registered, ASIC released a report relating to DDO compliance and the Treasurer announced the introduction of ‘payday super’.
REMINDER: We are hosting an ASFA legislation discussion group at our offices (Level 4, 600 Bourke Street, Melbourne) this coming Tuesday 9 May between 1pm and 2pm. The event is open to all ASFA members and is catered. Further details are available here. As registrations via this link have now closed, please email us at events@khq.com.au if you would like to attend.
ASIC – Report released in relation to DDO compliance
On 3 May 2023, ASIC issued a report encouraging product issuers to improve how they’re meeting their design and distribution obligations (DDO). In Report 762 Design and distribution obligations: Investment products, ASIC outlines the findings of its initial review of DDO compliance. According to ASIC, the ‘review found that a significant number of the product issuers made deficient target market determinations (TMDs), with poorly defined target markets and unclear or inadequate product governance arrangements’.
ASIC cautioned issuers against relying on ‘TMD templates without customising them appropriately’. Over the next few months, ASIC will be reviewing ‘how product issuers interact with their distributors to ensure they are not straying beyond their target market, how they monitor product governance arrangements and review data to ensure retail investors are receiving suitable products on an ongoing basis’.
Click here for details.
Government – Speech in relation to green investing
On 3 May 2023, the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, the Hon Stephen Jones MP, presented a speech in which (amongst other things), he outlined the role of the financial system in achieving the Government’s goals relating to climate change and infrastructure.
The speech focused on four main topics:
- the introduction of the ‘Sovereign Green Bonds Program’ which ‘enables investors to back public projects to drive [the Government’s] net zero transformation’;
- creating a ‘sustainable finance taxonomy’ – ie, a ‘common language’ to ‘provide common agreed standards and definitions about the sustainability characteristics of different investments’;
- the funding boost ASIC will receive next financial year, allowing ASIC ‘to increase its surveillance’ and enforcement activities in relation to greenwashing; and
- the development of an ‘Australian climate risk disclosure framework’ aimed at providing investors ‘with credible and comparable information’ and setting mandatory climate disclosure requirements.
Click here for details.
Treasury – Reforms to employer contribution rules: ‘payday super’
On 2 May 2023, the Treasurer, the Hon Dr Jim Chalmers MP, issued a media release announcing reforms to contribution rules for employers. According to the media release, ‘[f]rom 1 July 2026, employers will be required to pay their employees’ super at the same time as their salary and wages’. It notes that ‘[m]ore frequent super payments will make employers’ payroll management smoother with fewer liabilities building up on their books. Payday super will also make it easier for employees to keep track of their payments, and harder for them to be exploited by disreputable employers.’
Click here for details.
Legislation – Amendments to IDR reporting obligations
On 1 May 2023, the ASIC Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2023/282 (Instrument) was registered on the Federal Register of Legislation and commenced on 2 May 2023. The Instrument makes various amendments to ASIC Corporations (Internal Dispute Resolution Data Reporting) Instrument 2022/205 (see our Super Alert from 1 April 2022).
According to the Explanatory Statement, the Instrument makes the following amendments:
- clarifying the meaning of closed complaints that do not need to be reported as part of the IDR reporting obligations;
- clarifying the types of complaints that are to be included in the information report to ASIC;
- providing that IDR information is to be reported ‘to ASIC within two months after the end of each reporting period’;
- identifying the ‘second tranche firms’ that will be required to ‘commence reporting for the period ending 30 June 2023’; and
- providing the requirement for ‘financial firms to notify ASIC if they have no complaints to report for a reporting period’, ‘within two months after the end of the reporting period’.
Click here for details.
APRA – Signed memorandum of understanding with AFCA
On 28 April 2023, APRA issued a media release announcing it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with AFCA. According to the media release, ‘[t]he MoU sets out the basis for engagement between APRA and AFCA, including information sharing and other forms of cooperation and coordination’ allowing them to continue working ‘together to support a fair and efficient financial system’.
The MoU sets out that ‘each authority will’:
- proactively ‘inform’ and ‘provide appropriate information’ to the other authority;
- ‘consult’ with the other authority when needed;
- ‘collaborate’ with ‘the other authority to achieve or improve regulatory outcomes’; and
- ‘engage effectively’ ‘to improve the efficiency’ of interactions with each other and with industry participants.
Click here for details.
This alert was written by Kiara Leslie (Lawyer), Sanela Osmanovic (Senior Associate), and Natalie Cambrell (Director).
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