The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) published updates in the Regulatory Guide 263 Financial Services and Credit Panel, the new INFO sheet 273 Financial Services and Credit Panel (FSCP) decisions: Your Rights and published Report 734: Response to submissions on CP 359 Update RG263 Services and Credit Panel (Rep 734).
The ASIC Commissioner Danielle Press said, “The FSCP, combined with ASIC’s new warning and reprimand powers, enables ASIC to respond to a range of financial advice misconduct, including lower-level misconduct that may otherwise go unaddressed.”
The FSCP and the updates in the FSCP come from the Royal Commission recommendations to have an external disciplinary body to matters related to financial advisers.
The securities and investments Commissioner added, “The FSCP has been given its own functions and powers to consider and take action in response to financial adviser misconduct. We look forward to working with the industry members of the FSCP who will bring their technical knowledge and practical experience to disciplinary decisions.”
FSCP Powers
ASIC FSCP page highlights some of the powers of the external disciplinary body:
the power to direct financial advisers to undertake specified training, counselling, supervision or report certain matters to ASIC;
the power to suspend or prohibit a financial adviser’s registration;
the power to issue infringement notices in specified circumstances;
the power to recommend that ASIC commence civil penalty proceedings; and
the power to accept enforceable undertakings from financial advisers.
