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David Jacobson

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ASIC has registered the ASIC Corporations (Product Intervention Order—Binary Options) Instrument 2021/240 which prohibits issuing and dealing in over-the-counter binary options in relation to retail clients and requires binary option issuers to take reasonable steps to notify their past retail clients of the terms of the instrument. In making the instrument says it is satisfied that the financial product has resulted in, or will or is likely to result in, significant detriment to retail clients.…
The Banking Executive Accountability Regime (Size of an Authorised Deposit-taking Institution) Determination 2021 has been registered. It sets out the methodology to determine the size of an authorised deposit-taking institution (ADI) as small, medium or large, by considering the total assets of the ADI as reported to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA). The Banking Executive Accountability Regime (BEAR) requires ADIs to defer an accountable person’s remuneration in certain circumstances; the amount deferred depends on…
ASIC has announced that it has commenced legal action against Westpac in the Federal Court, alleging it mis-sold credit card insurance to customers that had not agreed to the policies. The CCI was underwritten by subsidiaries of Westpac. The alleged breaches occurred over four months from 7 April 2015 to 18 July 2015 and related to unsolicited add-on insurance attached to credit loan and personal loan products sold to about 384 customers. The total number…
In Australian Securities and Investments Commission v TAL Life Limited (No 2) [2021] FCA 193 the Federal Court of Australia found that TAL Life Limited (TAL) breached its duty to act with utmost good faith under the Insurance Contracts Act when handling a claim made under an income protection policy. The case related to a 39 year old self-employed healthcare worker (whose identity was the subject of a non-publication order during the Financial Services Royal…
The Commonwealth Government has announced its response to the Australian Human Rights Commission’s recommendations in the Respect@Work: Sexual Harassment National Inquiry Report by the Sex Discrimination Commissioner. As well as preventative education and training, the Report recommended that the right of workers to be free from sexual harassment is a human right, a workplace right, and a safety right, which should be legally recognised through a positive duty on employers to eliminate it. The Government…
The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services has begun an inquiry into Mobile payment and digital wallet financial services. The inquiry will focus on: the nature of commercial relationships and business models, including any imbalance in bargaining power, operating between providers of mobile payment digital wallet services and: providers of financial services in Australia; merchants and vendors; and consumers; differences between commercial relationships in Australia and other jurisdictions; the implications for competition and…
ASIC has announced that it has commenced civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), alleging that CBA engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct and contravened its obligation as an Australian financial services licensee to comply with financial services laws to provide financial services efficiently, honestly and fairly by charging monthly access fees to customers when it was not entitled to do so. ASIC alleges that, between 1 June…
ASIC has issued a temporary ‘no-action’ position in relation to the convening and holding of virtual meetings after 21 March 2021. ASIC’s position relates to virtual meetings facilitated by the Corporations (Coronavirus Economic Response) Determination (No. 3) 2020 (Cth) which expired on 21 March 2021. The position relating to the convening and holding of meetings using virtual technology applies to meetings held between 21 March 2021 and the earlier of 31 October 2021 and the date…
Treasury has released for consultation instruments that set out the transitional periods that directors will have to apply for a director identification number during the early stages of the director ID regime. Background. The director identification number (director ID) is a unique identifier that a director will keep forever. The director ID will help prevent the appointment of fictitious directors and facilitate traceability of their profile and relationships with companies over time. The legislative…
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has published an information paper outlining stronger requirements for being granted a banking licence, and closer supervision of new entrants as they seek to establish themselves. The revised approach to licensing and supervising new authorised deposit-taking institutions (ADIs) follows a review of APRA’s ADI licensing regime aimed at incorporating learnings since the launch of the Restricted ADI licensing pathway in 2018. The review found the approach needed a greater…