Australian Securities & Investments Commission signals possible reforms to make it easier to list and stay listed as private markets grow

Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) Commissioner Simone Constant used a Conexus Fiduciary Investors Symposium discussion to outline ASIC’s developing approach to the structural shift toward private markets, while indicating the regulator is considering steps to streamline settings for companies to list and remain listed. Constant rejected the idea that privatisation is primarily driven by a desire to avoid public-market transparency, pointing instead to macro factors including the volume and mobility of global capital and Australia’s superannuation system. She emphasised the “public utility” of listed markets for liquidity and investor access, and noted feedback that companies are staying private largely for growth, with public market scrutiny and certain regulatory and governance features (including continuous disclosure and related reporting expectations) viewed as making medium-to-longer-term growth harder. On supervision, she distinguished between priorities in retail-facing private credit distribution (effective disclosure and practices) and institutional activity (meeting responsibilities tied to market integrity and the handling of sensitive information), and flagged ASIC’s renewed focus on reporting and public disclosures that sit around valuation and governance practices where the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority leads. ASIC’s position and potential measures were described as still being formulated following a large consultation process.