The Australian Securities & Investments Commission published Report 835 alongside a summary of its Financial Markets and Innovation roundtable, setting out four main priorities for keeping Australia’s capital markets competitive while supporting innovation with investor protections. Drawing on discussion with 32 industry, academic and public sector participants on 30 June 2026, ASIC highlighted the need to prepare for more globalised markets, strengthen core market infrastructure, focus innovation on practical productivity gains, and preserve trust through clear safeguards. The discussion pointed to pressure on Australia to remain attractive for listings and capital formation as investors gain easier access to offshore opportunities. Participants emphasised lower costs, fewer structural barriers for new entrants and infrastructure upgrades, including work on tokenising Austraclear, extending post-trade processing windows by 2027 and improving collateral mobility. A recurring message was that stronger foundations should come before more ambitious reform, with priorities including modernising fixed income infrastructure, reducing friction in collateral and over-the-counter settlement, improving domestic and offshore clearing links, and considering cleared repo. In equities, discussion focused on clearing, trading and settlement improvements, broader access to infrastructure and better liquidity. Innovation in tokenisation, artificial intelligence, real-time infrastructure and digital assets was discussed mainly in terms of whether it solves current frictions, especially in fixed income, currency and commodities markets, while participants also called for clear settings for new products, more efficient initial public offering pathways and guardrails for retail access and AI-enabled services. ASIC said it will follow up with targeted industry workshops and engagement with regulatory peers before reconvening roundtable participants to assess progress and practical next steps.

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