Australia & NZ

ASIC will grant a three-year exemption from the obligation to ensure that financial advisers are covered by a compliance scheme, and from the associated notification obligations.

The plan undoes months of effort by industry associations to form an independent body to monitor and enforce compliance with a new code of ethics for financial advisors.

The ACCC is commencing an inquiry to find out why banks are not fully passing on interest rate cuts to borrowers, and what prevents customers from switching to cheaper lenders.

The main changes relate to increased reporting, better and more timely disclosure by listed investment companies, and new measures to address listing rule breaches.

The bank disclosed since last year that it could be fined for nine years of AML failures, but it has not yet had enough information to make provisions against the possible penalties.

A review of Australia's financial counselling sector has recommended that the big four banks fund half of the initial contributions immediately needed to expand delivery of such services.

A new consultation paper outlines four options for changes to the roll structure and order management functionality for the 3 and 10 Year Treasury Bond Futures contracts.

In a new consultation paper, the RBNZ proposes legislative changes that would allow it to take on a more active monitoring and coordination role in the cash system.

RBNZ deputy governor Geoff Bascand says the central bank will review the amount of capital, what form it takes, and the allowed transition period before final decisions are made.

The review has sparked concerns about whether superannuation could be made voluntary, amid guarantee increases until 2025 that may end up squeezing workers' wages.