Continuing Professional Development

Tens of thousands of Budget Direct customers lost online insurance discounts they were promised and were overcharged for premiums as part of misconduct that went on for years, ASIC alleges.

In Federal Court proceedings launched against Auto & General Services Pty Ltd, the insurer that arranges Budget Direct insurance products, ASIC alleges that:

• between March 2020 and July 2024, Auto & General advertised significant discounts of up to 30% for Budget Direct customers who purchased car, home or motorbike insurance policies online with the advertisements being viewed by millions of consumers; and
• approximately 39,000 customers lost their online discount after making amendments to their policy during the first year. The average premium discount loss amounted to nearly $100 and across the cohort was worth $3.3 million.

It is ASIC’s case that the advertising was misleading because customers were not told the discounts would be removed following any changes such as a change in address, either at the time they signed up, or at the time that they made the change.

ASIC alleges Auto & General first became aware of the issue as early as 2016 but failed to fix it or inform affected customers for years. ASIC alleges that senior staff were aware of the problem but did not immediately fix it.

ASIC has cancelled the Australian financial services licence (AFS licence) of Private Wealth Pty Ltd (Private Wealth) following two payments by the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort (CSLR).

On 30 June 2025, the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) made a determination against Private Wealth, which Private Wealth failed to pay. Subsequently, on 3 December 2025, the CSLR made a payment of $60,317.40 for the AFCA determination and notified ASIC.

On 31 July 2025, AFCA made a determination against Private Wealth, which Private Wealth failed to pay. Subsequently, on 3 December 2025, the CSLR made a payment of $54,963.84 for the AFCA determination and notified ASIC.

As a result, on 12 February 2026, ASIC cancelled Private Wealth’s Australian financial services licence.

ASIC must cancel the AFS licence of a licensee where that licensee fails to pay an AFCA determination and the CSLR subsequently pays compensation.

The cancellation is not subject to discretion or merits review. In making the cancellation order, ASIC has specified that Private Wealth is to maintain its membership with AFCA for a further 12 months, to 5 February 2027. This means that complaints about Private Wealth can be lodged with AFCA until 5 February 2027.

ASIC has secured the highest six-monthly civil penalty total in its history and hundreds of millions of dollars in payments which will flow to Australians in connection with ASIC’s work.

New figures reveal ASIC secured a record $349.8 million in court-ordered civil penalties in the second half of 2025 following successful cases against some of Australia’s largest companies and super trustees including ANZ, NAB, Cbus, RAMS and Australian Unity Funds Management.

ASIC’s work will also see a total of $583 million returned to millions of Australians through refunds from excessive bank fees after its Better and Beyond review and in payments in connection with investigations into the Shield Master Fund and First Guardian Master Fund.

‘ASIC has secured record penalties in response to serious misconduct, and is protecting Australians and safeguarding trust and confidence in Australia’s financial system,’ ASIC Chair Joe Longo said.

‘Today, ASIC is one of the most active law enforcement agencies in the country. We are taking more cases to court, achieving record penalties, and protecting consumers.’

ASIC’s criminal enforcement work has also helped hold those who broke Australia’s financial services laws to account.

While the matter is subject to appeal, the Supreme Court of Western Australia sentenced West Australian fraudster Chris Marco to a 14-year term of imprisonment.

New ASIC data released today shows an increase in reports of misconduct (ROMs), driven largely by corporate governance concerns, including failures to provide company records, insolvency matters and shareholder issues.

Between 1 July and 31 December 2025, ASIC received 9,686 ROMs, raising 13,036 issues. Corporate governance matters accounted for 40% of these issues, with financial services and retail investor issues totalling 44%.

ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court said, ‘The figures point to an increase in concerns being raised about corporate governance issues.

Commissioner Alan Kirkland delivered a keynote address at the Professional Planner Advice Policy Summit on 23 February 2026.

Here are the highlights of Alan’s address:

• Addressing the conduct that led to the collapse of the Shield and First Guardian Master Funds is one of ASIC’s biggest priorities.
• ASIC’s enforcement work on these matters complements our ongoing program of surveillance. Last week, ASIC commenced a review of advice licensees that use lead generation services. We are also reviewing super trustee practices to understand the steps they have taken to detect and disrupt high-risk super-switching.
• As work on reforms to make the system safer for consumers continues, ASIC is stepping up assistance for people looking for help today – including by revitalising and rebuilding our Moneysmart resources.

Find out more in the full speech.

The Best Practice Principles help superannuation trustees design and deliver effective retirement income solutions for their members. The principles are voluntary and were shaped through broad industry consultation.

They set out clear, member‑focused practices while allowing trustees to tailor their approach to the needs of their own membership.

What the principles do

The principles support trustees to:

• Understand their members and their retirement income needs.
• Build products and settings that support effective retirement income solutions.
• Combine products and settings to create solutions for different groups of members.
• Engage members so they can make informed decisions in retirement.
• Review and improve their retirement income solutions over time.

Why they matter

The principles outline trustee practices that aim to improve member outcomes, support innovation and strengthen Australia’s retirement income system.

On 5 February 2026, the Australian Government tabled its formal response to the Senate Committee Economics inquiry on the Treasury Laws Amendment (Responsible Buy Now Pay Later and Other Measures) Bill 2024.

The Government rejects calls for further detailed consultation on delegated legislation, emphasising that extensive engagement occurred between 2022 and 2025 with BNPL providers, consumer groups, regulators and other stakeholders. This included consultation on an options paper, draft legislation and regulations, consideration of the Committee’s August 2024 report, targeted follow-up discussions, and updated draft regulations prior to finalisation.

The resulting National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Low Cost Credit) Regulations 2025 commenced in June 2025 alongside the Act’s main provisions, bringing BNPL products into a regulated credit framework with modified responsible lending obligations and fee caps. While the document also addresses recommendations concerning deductible gift recipient status and the instant asset write-off, its central focus is the Government’s defence of the BNPL reforms and the thorough consultation underpinning their implementation.

The ACCC will renew its focus on manipulative and false practices in digital markets and the sale of dangerous goods online in the year ahead, and will also focus its compliance and enforcement efforts on addressing anti-competitive conduct in key sectors across the Australian economy.

Announcing the ACCC’s compliance and enforcement priorities at a CEDA event in Sydney today, Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the agency’s priorities reflected persistent concerns raised by consumers and business about the cost of goods and services, conduct undermining trust in the digital economy, and restrictions imposed by businesses that limit other businesses’ ability to compete.

“Our priorities are grounded in the understanding that competition and consumer trust are vital to a productive, resilient economy,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

“They recognise the pressures facing households and businesses, the pace of change in markets, and the need for regulatory responses that are evidence-based, proportionate to harm and effective.”

Ms Cass-Gottlieb said the ACCC remained committed to its enduring priorities, which include conduct that strikes at the competitive process itself — cartel and other collusive behaviour, exclusionary conduct, anti-competitive agreements and the misuse of market power.

“Competition drives productivity by incentivising investment, innovation and efficiency. And competition law, and its rigorous enforcement, are important contributors to productivity growth,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

“But competition alone is not enough. Markets only deliver when people trust them.”

“Consumers must trust that prices reflect genuine competition, that information is accurate, that products are safe and that basic rights will be honoured.”

Ensuring clear and accurate pricing information in supermarkets, retail and essential services

Ms Cass-Gottlieb said the ACCC would continue to prioritise consumer and competition issues in the supermarket and retail sector given the central role this sector plays in household budgets and the economy, particularly in a period of sustained cost-of-living pressures.

“Accurate pricing information is fundamental to effective competition. When discount claims mislead, consumers cannot make informed choices and businesses that follow the rules may be disadvantaged.”

In 2026-27, the ACCC will also continue to address misleading pricing and claims in relation to essential services with a focus on energy and telecommunications, as well as promoting competition in these sectors.

“Essential services, including telecommunications, electricity and gas, involve complex pricing structures that make it difficult for consumers and small businesses to compare offers and exercise choice. When information is unclear, consumers and small businesses have limited ability to avoid harm,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

Targeting manipulative online practices that undermine consumer trust

In 2026-27, the ACCC will prioritise manipulative and false practices, and unsafe consumer goods, in digital markets.

“This priority recognises the emergence of practices including subscription traps and other dark patterns that manipulate consumer behaviour and unfairly impact consumer choice,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

“It also recognises the rise in unsafe consumer goods available right across our economy facilitated by the increasing scale and reach of digital markets.”

Consumer guarantees with a focus on motor vehicles

Challenges for consumers being able to access their consumer guarantee rights remains one of the most common issues raised with the ACCC. For this reason, the ACCC will continue to prioritise improving business compliance with meeting their consumer guarantee obligations and this year will pay particular attention to consumer guarantee issues relating to motor vehicles.

“Purchasing a motor vehicle is one of the most significant purchases that many consumers will make, and when an issue arises with their vehicle that is covered by consumer guarantees then businesses must meet their obligation to fulfil this basic consumer right.”

“Our renewed focus in this space includes exploring different approaches to achieve compliance, including working collaboratively with industry to deliver changes for the benefit of consumers,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

Improving business compliance under new government reforms

Over the past year, the Government has announced significant reforms in relation to key competition and consumer issues, including the new merger regime, unfair trading practices, consumer guarantees, excessive pricing and scam prevention.

In light of these reforms, the ACCC will significantly step up its education and compliance initiatives in these areas to ensure that as the reforms are introduced, they are effectively implemented.

“We welcome the suite of reforms that have been announced and will proactively engage with businesses to promote compliance and ensure they understand their obligations as these reforms come into effect.”

“The ACCC uses a range of compliance and enforcement tools to encourage compliance with the laws that we enforce. While improving business compliance will remain our priority, if we observe non-compliance then we would consider the most appropriate enforcement tool to address any misconduct,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

The ACCC will continue to work closely with Treasury to progress consideration of digital competition reforms.

More information including the full list of the ACCC’s 2026-27 enforcement priorities is available at Compliance and enforcement policy and priorities.

A summary is also available at 2026-27 Compliance and Enforcement Priorities.

A transcript of the speech is available online.

Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill 2025

Amends the Corporations Act 2001 and Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 to update Australia’s digital asset regulatory regime by: defining the core concepts of digital tokens, digital asset platforms and tokenised custody platforms; applying the financial services law in a way that is tailored to these platforms; providing targeted exemptions for certain digital token arrangements; and providing the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Minister with powers to regulate these platforms.

ASIC has commenced a new review of advice licensees using lead generation services as part of its ongoing program of work to address practices that inappropriately or unnecessarily encourage consumers to switch their superannuation.

Lead generation is a marketing activity designed to create consumer interest in a product or service, with the goal of persuading consumers to purchase the product or service. These services use a range of marketing techniques to introduce consumers to financial services businesses – including some businesses that encourage consumers to switch their super.

ASIC is concerned that certain practices associated with some lead generation services in financial advice and superannuation may expose consumers to a risk of significant losses.

To help mitigate risks to consumers, ASIC has commenced a review to identify financial advice businesses that use lead generation services, to understand the nature of these arrangements and where appropriate, take disruptive or enforcement action.

As part of the review, ASIC is publishing a list of known entities involved in lead generation, those acting as referral partners, and advice licensees or corporate authorised representatives that have acquired leads, since 1 July 2024.

To improve transparency for consumers, ASIC will continue to update this list of businesses, websites, authorised representatives, financial advisers and financial services licensees involved in lead generation, acting as referral partners or engaging the services of lead generators throughout the course of this review.

The naming of the entities in this list should not be construed as an indication by ASIC that a contravention of the law has occurred, nor should it be considered a reflection upon any person or entity.

Treasury are consulting on a proposed system to label sustainable financial products. Your feedback will help shape the design.

This paper outlines the key parts of a sustainable financial product labelling system. It will be developed with input from industry and investors.

The paper covers:

• the scope of the system
• consumer-facing disclosures
• thresholds for labelling
• evidence requirements.

Treasury invite feedback on:

• proposed policy details for the labelling system
• questions in the consultation paper.

The Albanese Government has appointed Professor Bruce Preston as a part‑time member of the Reserve Bank of Australia Monetary Policy Board.

Professor Preston is one of Australia’s most highly respected and experienced macroeconomists and he will do an excellent job on the Monetary Policy Board.

The RBA is a vital economic institution and we are making sure it has the right mix of skills and expertise to meet Australia’s economic challenges.

Professor Preston is currently a Professor of Economics at the University of New South Wales, and his research focus includes macroeconomic theory and policy. He previously served as a senior advisor at the Reserve Bank of Australia and at the Treasury.

His five‑year term will commence on 1 March 2026.

The Government is ensuring Australia’s key economic and financial institutions are strong and well‑led in an era of global economic uncertainty.

This appointment follows a thorough and considered selection process, including consultation with the Opposition.

The appointment was made on the advice of a Panel comprising the Treasury Secretary, the Reserve Bank Governor and former Secretary to the Treasury and Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Martin Parkinson AC PSM.

The Panel compiled a shortlist of candidates drawing on the open and transparent expression of interest process that was run for the Government’s appointments in 2024, and applied a skills matrix to ensure the right mix of skills and experience on the Board.

The Government thanks outgoing member, Mrs Alison Watkins AM, for her commitment and contributions to the Monetary Policy Board and previously the Reserve Bank Board.

ASIC has cancelled the Australian financial services (AFS) licence of securities dealer Pulse Markets Pty Ltd (Pulse Markets), effective from 11 February 2026.

The licence was cancelled after ASIC found Pulse Markets had serious and sustained breaches of its duties under s912A of the Corporations Act 2001. These included Pulse’s failure to adequately supervise its corporate authorised representatives (CARs) providing financial services under its AFS licence, increasing the risk they will not comply with financial services laws and put clients at risk of financial loss.

ASIC found that Pulse Markets failed to comply with its obligations, including failure to:

• maintain the competence required to provide the financial services it offered

• take reasonable steps to ensure that its representatives comply with the financial services laws by failing to:

• • undertake appropriate due diligence prior to the appointment of its CARs
  • take adequate steps to monitor the websites and marketing of its CARs
  • maintain adequate compliance, breach and incident registers, and
  • maintain compliance manuals with accurate information about AFS licence authorisations

• ensure adequate resources, including staffing, to provide the financial services covered by the licence and to carry out supervisory arrangements

• prepare and lodge financial statements (being a balance sheet and a profit and loss statement) for financial years 2024 and 2025

• obtain an opinion by a registered company auditor regarding Pulse Market’s compliance with the financial conditions on their licence for financial years 2024 and 2025
• pay its Industry Funding Levy for the 2023-2024 financial year.

Additional Budget Estimates, Opening Statement by ASIC Acting Chair Sarah Court, Senate Economics Legislation Committee, 11 February 2026

US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins and 2025 Nobel prize-winning economist Joel Mokyr are among a range of international experts who will address ASIC’s upcoming symposium, ‘The Asia Pacific opportunity – Innovating for growth’.

Tickets are now available for the event, which will bring together financial services, markets and technology leaders.

The symposium will follow the Asia-Pacific meetings of IOSCO and with the European Commission, meaning securities regulators from across the world will join other experts including the Chair of the European Securities and Markets Authority Verena Ross at the symposium in Sydney.

John Lonsdale, Chair – Australian Prudential Regulation Authority

Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you once again today.

Let me begin by assuring the Committee that Australia’s financial system remains strong, stable and resilient. Australians can be confident in the financial and operational resilience of the banks, insurers and superannuation funds that APRA supervises. However, uncertainty and risks in the global financial system are at heightened levels.

Developments impacting the global financial system have continued apace in recent months. In particular, we see geopolitical risks, amplified by disruptions from cyber-attacks and operational outages, and the risk of regulatory fragmentation across the international financial system, adding to the potential for shocks to the Australian financial system.

In response to these risks, APRA is taking action. Alongside our fellow agencies on the Council of Financial Regulators (CFR), we are working with entities to ensure they are resilient to a broad range of geopolitical scenarios. We are progressing work with entities to deliver resilience action plans; expanding and testing the CFR crisis response playbook with stronger intelligence sharing; strengthening system infrastructure through payment backups and broader contingencies; progressing industry surge capacity for sanctions; and establishing the crisis powers that may be required.

With the frequency and intensity of cyber-attacks across the financial system remaining elevated, lifting cyber security policies and practices across our regulated industries is another top priority. Within the superannuation sector, we are requiring several trustees to bring forward actions to harden their cyber controls. By April this year, the seven superannuation funds impacted by the last year’s “credential-stuffing” attacks will have uplifted their authentication controls. This follows our work requiring impacted trustees to have independent assessments of the effectiveness of their authentication controls. Across all industries, we are working with entities to assess potential risks from concentrations of third-party service providers. This will inform CFR work to develop more effective oversight arrangements for mitigating these risks.

ASIC has banned Melbourne-based financial adviser Neil McPherson from providing financial services, controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business or performing any function involved in the carrying on of a financial services business for four years.

ASIC found that Mr McPherson gave inappropriate advice to certain clients which was not in their best interests because he recommended clients invest most of their superannuation into the High Growth class, the Growth class or the Balanced class of the Shield Master Fund which were high risk investments, during the time he was authorised by MWL Financial Services Pty Ltd.

ASIC has reason to believe that Mr McPherson is not a fit and proper person, is not competent and is likely to contravene a financial services law.

The banning order took effect from 5 February 2026.

Mr McPherson‘s banning has been recorded on Banned and Disqualified Register.

Mr McPherson has the right to appeal the decision to the Administrative Review Tribunal.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Building a Stronger and Fairer Super System) Bill 2026 into Parliament. Colloquially known as Div 296, the 0.3 per cent of Australians with the highest super balances are proposed to pay additional tax. Reworking of the bill followed the government’s October backflip on taxing unrealised gains after the plan received heavy criticism.

The new version will see the additional tax payable only on the realised investment earnings generated by the portion of an individual’s total superannuation balance that exceeds $3 million, as well as a higher tax rate totalling 40 per cent on earnings from the TSB portion exceeding $10 million.

Australian fixed-income specialist, FIIG Securities Limited (FIIG), has been ordered to pay $2.5 million in pecuniary penalties after ASIC brought a case against the firm for failures to protect thousands of clients from cyber security threats for more than four years.

FIIG’s failures worsened a 2023 cyber-attack which saw around 385 gigabytes of confidential information stolen and highly sensitive client data leaked onto the dark web – including driver’s licences, passport information, bank account details and tax file numbers.

FIIG notified some 18,000 clients that their personal information may have been compromised.

FIIG admitted that it failed to comply with its Australian Financial Services (AFS) licence obligations and that adequate cyber security measures – suited to a firm of its size and the sensitivity of client data held – would have enabled it to detect and respond to the data breach sooner. It also admitted that complying with its own policies and procedures could have supported earlier detection and prevented some or all of the client information from being downloaded.

The Federal Court today ordered FIIG to pay a $2.5 million penalty and pay $500,000 towards ASIC’s costs. The Court also ordered FIIG to undertake a compliance programme involving the engagement of an independent expert to ensure its cyber security and cyber resilience systems are reasonably managed.