In an opening statement to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services, the Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) outlined enforcement outcomes for the second half of 2025 and its priorities for 2026, including a sharper focus on corporate governance and directors’ duties. ASIC reported record enforcement results, highlighted recent court outcomes against senior executives, and pointed to misconduct reporting data as reinforcing its governance-led enforcement agenda. Between 1 July and 31 December 2025, ASIC secured AUD 350 million in civil penalties and returned AUD 583 million to Australians, including recoveries connected to the First Guardian and Shield matters. ASIC highlighted a Federal Court finding that former Star Entertainment Group Ltd CEO Matthias Bekier and former Chief Legal and Risk Officer Paula Martin breached their duties in relation to risks associated with money laundering and criminal activity at the casino, while seven non-executive directors were found not to have breached their duties. The statement also referenced criminal outcomes including a 14-year sentence for investor fraud totalling more than AUD 34 million (subject to appeal), a four-year and ten-month sentence for dishonest use of director position linked to investor losses of over AUD 20 million, and a six-year sentence for insider trading involving more than AUD 3 million of Platinum Asset Management Limited shares (also under appeal), described as the first outcome from ASIC’s specialist insider trading team. ASIC noted that ANZ was ordered in December 2025 to pay AUD 250 million in penalties for widespread misconduct and systemic risk failures affecting the Australian Government, taxpayers and at least 65,000 retail customers, and that ASIC received 9,686 reports of misconduct raising 13,036 issues in the same half-year period, with corporate governance accounting for 40% of issues. ASIC indicated it will seek financial penalties and management disqualification orders at a further penalty hearing for Mr Bekier and Ms Martin. The statement also set out ongoing litigation and consumer communications in relation to First Guardian and Shield, including court action against SQM, Interprac Financial Planning, MWL, Imperial Capital Group and Diversa Trustees Limited (in connection with around AUD 300 million invested through superannuation funds for which Diversa was trustee). On market infrastructure, ASIC referenced ASX Group commitments announced in December 2025 following the ASX Inquiry interim report, including governance changes, a reset of the “Accelerate” transformation program with milestones, and an additional AUD 150 million capital charge on ASX Limited pending remediation, with the ASX Inquiry final report due to be delivered to ASIC by 31 March 2026 and released publicly shortly thereafter.

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