The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) Chair Joe Longo used an opening statement to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services to update on ASIC’s enforcement activity and priority work, pointing to a higher rate of investigations and court actions and highlighting major matters involving ANZ and high-risk superannuation switching. ASIC reported 132 new investigations and 23 new court actions in the first six months of 2025, compared with 63 investigations and 12 actions in the same period last year, and said it secured six criminal convictions and AUD 57.5 million in civil penalties over the last six months. On ANZ, ASIC and ANZ will ask the Federal Court to impose penalties of AUD 240 million across four proceedings, with ANZ admitting unconscionable conduct in services provided to the Australian Government, incorrectly reporting bond trading data by overstating volumes by tens of billions of dollars, and widespread misconduct affecting nearly 65,000 customers. On high-risk super switching, ASIC outlined work to preserve remaining assets and explore compensation avenues, flagged concerns about trustee due diligence and monitoring, and noted court action against Equity Trustees Superannuation Limited over alleged due diligence failures relating to the Shield Master Fund, alongside licence cancellation for MWL Financial Services and ongoing proceedings against Ferras Merhi. ASIC said its high-risk super investigations are ongoing and cover multiple entity types including lead generators, advisers and licensees, trustees, a research house, auditors and managed investment schemes, with further action increasingly likely and a next phase focused on holding key players to account. The statement also referenced non-enforcement work including an inquiry into ASX and published work on public and private markets, death benefits, and retail banking, and highlighted resourcing and data-capability constraints alongside a need for investment in digital technologies.
Australian Securities & Investments Commission 2025-09-18
Australian Securities & Investments Commission tells parliamentary committee it opened 132 investigations in H1 2025 and is seeking AUD 240 million in ANZ penalties
ASIC Chair Joe Longo updated the Parliamentary Joint Committee on enforcement activities, noting increased investigations and court actions, including major cases involving ANZ and high-risk superannuation switching. ASIC reported 132 new investigations and 23 court actions in early 2025, with ANZ facing AUD 240 million in penalties. Ongoing high-risk super investigations involve multiple entities, with further actions likely, and the agency highlighted resource and data-capability constraints.