Australia

Australia Consults on Streamlined Investment Process for Major Projects

By Thisanka Siripala | 18/09/2024

The so-called ‘Front Door’ initiative aims to make it simpler and quicker for investment capital to flow into “major, transformational projects” in the country.

Australia to Proceed With Changes to Tax Agent Code of Conduct

By Thisanka Siripala | 18/09/2024

The government has agreed to revise some of the amendments to the code in response to a lobbying effort from the industry.

Market Infrastructure

Australian Lawmakers Fail to Agree on Reforms to RBA

By Thisanka Siripala | 18/09/2024

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has been trying to gain support for a bill to reform the RBA’s governance structure, but negotiations in the House have now ceased.

FMA Consults on New Reporting Rules Under CoFI Regime

By Sanday Chongo Kabange | 17/09/2024

The regulatory returns ask firms to provide details on their business structure and the fair conduct programmes they must maintain under CoFI.

Fintech / Regtech

New Zealand FMA Joins Global Financial Innovation Network

By Editors | 17/09/2024

The FMA said GFIN will provide it greater opportunities to collaborate with other regulators and work on topics such as AI and tokenisation.

Sanctions

Australia Sanctions Five Iranians Over “Violent Repression” of Protests

By Editors | 16/09/2024

The sanctions mark the second anniversary of the death of Mahsa Jina Amini, who was arrested for “improperly” wearing her hijab and died in custody.

AML / KYC

Australia Proposes Bill to Establish Scams Prevention Framework

By Sanday Chongo Kabange | 16/09/2024

The framework creates obligations for banks, telcos and tech giants to prevent, detect, report, disrupt, and respond to scams.

ESG / Sustainability

New Zealand FMA Calls For Better Ethical Investing Disclosures

By Thisanka Siripala | 13/09/2024

The FMA says it may pursue regulatory action for misleading or deceptive conduct, advertising or disclosures regarding ethical investments.

Market Infrastructure

Australia Introduces First Tranche of Privacy Reforms to Parliament

By Manesh Samtani | 12/09/2024

The proposed reforms will strengthen the OAIC’s enforcement toolkit and provide the Courts new functions and capabilities to address privacy breaches.