ASIC has stripped the highest number of individuals and businesses from Australia's financial services sector in five years, as the regulator leans more heavily on administrative powers to move faster against misconduct.
Between July 2025 and June 2026, the corporate regulator delivered 150 enforcement outcomes, removing or restricting 87 individuals and businesses from providing financial services, removing or restricting 27 from credit services, and disqualifying 36 individuals from managing corporations.
The financial services figure marks the highest level of removals and restrictions in five years, while director disqualifications climbed sharply compared with the previous financial year.
The removals sit alongside ASIC's broader 2026 enforcement agenda, which has specifically flagged mortgage broker conduct as a focus area.
The bulk of these actions resulted in permanent consequences for those involved.
Of the total, 61% of financial services outcomes and 89% of credit-related outcomes ended in permanent banning orders or licence cancellations. This included 77 permanent bannings and cancellations across credit and financial services, comprising 31 individuals and 46 organisations, along with six people banned for 10 years and 31 banned for shorter terms. Eighteen of the 36 director disqualifications were set at the maximum five-year period allowed under the Corporations Act.
The administrative removals come on top of a separate record set by ASIC's court action this year, with the regulator securing $830 million in civil penalties and $644 million in customer refunds across banks, super trustees, and credit providers in 2025–26. Together, the two tracks point to the regulator's most active enforcement year yet.
ASIC chair Sarah Court (pictured) said administrative tools such as licence cancellations and director disqualifications remain among the regulator's most effective options for intervening quickly.
"These administrative powers are critical levers that allow ASIC to act quickly and decisively to stop misconduct, protect consumers, investors and small businesses, and efficiently remove unsuitable operators from the market," Court said.
The regulator also continued its pursuit of advisers tied to the troubled Shield Master Fund and First Guardian Master Fund, banning 15 advisers connected to the two schemes over the financial year and pursuing further action against licensees, a director of a licensee and responsible managers.
Looking back at the year just gone, some of ASIC's most significant outcomes included permanently banning Abdullah Popal over fraud convictions linked to the dishonest transfer of almost $90,000 from former clients, and permanently banning former adviser Barry King after finding he misappropriated client funds and submitted false documents. Former Victorian property director Kylie Campbell received the maximum five-year disqualification following company collapses that left creditors facing substantial losses.
Court said the regulator would maintain this approach going forward.
"Every banning order, licence cancellation and director disqualification removes a pathway for rogue operators to continue earning a living from misconduct," she said.
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