ASIC deadline looms
The country’s biggest financial services licensees are scrambling to compile significant amounts of data ahead of this Friday’s deadline for the regulator’s industry audit.
The regulator is conducting an investigation of 20 to 30 of Australia’s largest institutionally-owned and independent dealer groups via a comprehensive desk audit.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has been in weekly contact with a number of licensees to discuss their progress with the audit in what is considered by some to be an unprecedented level of communication.
The workloads for these licensees’ compliance managers have significantly expanded as a result of ASIC’s request for information. The audit covers all aspects of a licensee’s operation through an 800-plus question survey issued to licensees just prior to Christmas.
The audit required hundreds of hours of work, according to compliance managers, with many having to reprioritise their workloads and in some cases employ external consultants to assist with the everyday compliance and monitoring demands.
In addition to the audit, many compliance managers are dealing with increased workloads as a result of the changes to the credit licensing regime, and some are continuing to deal with client complaints following the market downturn.
One compliance manager praised fund managers for their assistance in providing the required data.
A number of Victorian compliance professionals met with an ASIC representative last week in the lead up to the audit deadline.
The regulator has remained mum on the purpose of the audit.
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