Mortgage and finance brokers are being urged to review their marketing as the corporate regulator sharpens its focus on how financial products and services are promoted online.
ASIC has ramped up scrutiny of digital and social media advertising amid concerns about “finfluencers”, online spruiking, headline claims, and the promotion of complex structures such as trusts and SMSFs through short-form content on platforms including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
As part of this clampdown, ASIC is reviewing and updating Regulatory Guide 234 (RG 234), which sets out good practice guidance to help industry avoid false, misleading, or deceptive advertising.
“Brokers should assume that advertising and marketing practices are firmly on ASIC’s radar,” Mortgage & Finance Association of Australia CEO Anja Pannek (pictured) said. “Even well-intentioned content can create compliance risk if it is unclear, over-simplified, or taken out of context, particularly online.”
ASIC’s proposed changes put a sharper focus on digital and social media advertising, online calculators, and tools, and bold headline claims. For brokers, that means everyday marketing – from social tiles and websites to “educational” posts – must be clear, balanced, and accurate.
MFAA backs ASIC’s push to stamp out misleading or deceptive advertising and, in its RG 234 submission, is pushing for clear, practical expectations that small brokerages can realistically meet.
In that submission, MFAA seeks more detailed guidance on how brokers can compliantly use short-form digital ads, Best Interests Duty claims, calculators and tools in marketing, as well as clearer rules around when the term “mortgage broker” should be used to support consumer understanding and licensing integrity.
Pannek said MFAA supports ASIC’s objective of preventing misleading or deceptive advertising and is seeking to ensure expectations are workable for broker businesses, most of which are small operations with limited resources.
"We know the use of social platforms is an important element of how brokers engage and attract clients,” Pannek said. “Consumers are also increasingly using social platforms to educate themselves."
To support members, MFAA has released a resource, Managing advice risks in client conversations, which includes specific guidance on advertising and marketing, “helping brokers manage compliance risk while continuing to engage with consumers.”
The shift also aligns Australia with overseas regulators, including the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, which has led an international crackdown on illegal finfluencers and coordinated a global “week of action” targeting unlawful social media promotions.
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