Tag: APRA

APRA’s latest letter on artificial intelligence is a timely reminder for advisers: keep experimenting but bring AI use into the open before it becomes a compliance problem.

Modern wealth creation is a data business: signal, probability, optimisation at scale. Our regulators need a mindset shift if they are going to adapt to the brave new world of super.

ASIC has uncovered widespread failings in the compliance frameworks of responsible entities (REs) overseeing nearly $1 trillion in managed funds. Firms have seen the report, and there’s no longer any excuse for inaction – because retail investors are exposed.

While APRA’s proposed hybrid phase out is designed to improve the resilience of the financial system, it will inevitably impact investors and the strategic plans that some advisers have laid out. Navigating the transition will require forethought.

It’s odd that of the 12 published submissions to APRA’s consultation on hybrids, not one advocated getting rid of them altogether. Is the regulator trying to protect banks and retail investors from themselves, or is it simply “jumping at shadows”?

A joint review conducted by ASIC and APRA was scathing of funds’ collective attempts to meet their new legal obligation to help fund members plan for retirement, and urged them to “address, with urgency, the gaps in their approach”.

With new data showing offshore share investments comprise just 2 percent of total self-managed superannuation fund assets in Australia, advisers are warning SMSFs against overreliance on domestic shares and cash and urging diversification.

Stakeholders have welcomed a recommendation from the Senate Economics Legislative Committee that the government review its controversial plan to limit franking credits stemming from capital raisings and share buybacks.

The federal government is seeking feedback on proposed changes to rules aimed at preventing non-arm’s-length transactions by superannuation funds, in a bid to address concern that SMSFs and smaller funds that breach the provisions could be disproportionately penalised.

The Financial Services Council and its provider members are putting their weight behind the advice review leader’s suite of reforms as the December 16 delivery date looms.

Funds have adapted to the test’s metrics, but the consequent risk aversion could put the industry in “limp mode” and curb performance.