The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has unveiled a Corporate Plan for 2026–27 built around a dual promise: less friction for businesses trying to do the right thing, and less room to move for those who are not.
ASIC chair Sarah Court (pictured) framed the approach as central to the regulator's response to a financial system under sustained pressure from technological change and household cost-of-living strain, telling a CEDA address in Sydney that ASIC's role is to "act at the right time, address the right risks and create the conditions for Australians, businesses, and markets to have confidence in the financial system."
A key plank of the plan is sharpened focus on artificial intelligence, including how banks deploy AI in customer-facing services and how AI-driven manipulation or deepfakes could distort market integrity.
"AI can improve services, productivity and decision making, but its use must not weaken accountability or consumer and investor protections," Court said in a media release.
Consumer protection priorities for the year ahead include scams, debt collection, buy now pay later, and superannuation advice fee deductions, alongside a new surveillance program targeting managed investment schemes and audit conduct at the big four firms.
ASIC's plan also commits to streamlining how it deals with industry. Court said the regulator's modernised Australian Financial Services Licensing framework would see 80% of routine licence applications approved faster, without lowering entry requirements.
ASIC has also committed to cutting notices for thematic supervisory reviews by 15% and is working with APRA through the Council of Financial Regulators to reduce duplicated data requests across agencies.
A fully digitised company registry system, dubbed RegistryConnect, is slated for 2027 and will affect roughly 3.5 million companies, most of them small businesses — a shift Court said would help creditors, contractors, and regulators answer a basic question before extending credit or signing a lease: "who am I really dealing with?"
Taken together, the plan points to a regulator aiming to ease administrative drag for compliant businesses while keeping close watch on how AI and data are used across the sector — a balance Court described as building "confidence that financial harm will be addressed, confidence the rules are clear and proportionate, and confidence misconduct will have consequences."
Get the hottest and freshest property and mortgage news delivered right into your inbox. Subscribe now to our FREE daily newsletter.
