New Statements of Expectations for APRA and ASIC to focus more on growth

The Albanese Government is today releasing new Statements of Expectations for the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). In both Statements there’s now a bigger emphasis on promoting growth. This is all about enabling our financial regulators to unlock more productivity and more growth in our economy.

These statements will ensure our financial regulators can help support productivity, unlock investment and grow our economy while preserving financial stability and market integrity and protecting consumers from harm. We’re striking the right balance between supporting productivity and investment, reducing the regulatory burden on businesses, promoting stability, and safeguarding our financial system and markets.

Statements of Expectations are now available on Treasury’s website and set out the Government’s expectations for how APRA and ASIC will achieve their objectives and exercise their powers. We’re making it clear through these Statements of Expectations that we expect the regulators to support growth and productivity through proportionate, risk‑based regulation while continuing to promote financial stability, consumer protection and market integrity.

Our financial regulators play a crucial role in protecting businesses and consumers, but they can also play an important role when it comes to tackling Australia’s long‑standing productivity challenge. The action we’re taking today issuing these Statements of Expectations for our regulators supports the substantial productivity agenda we’re already delivering, including though the Council of Financial Regulators’ roadmap to deliver more coordinated and efficient regulation of the financial sector.

This is all consistent with the clear direction set by the Economic Reform Roundtable last year. Boosting productivity, unlocking investment and growing our economy while preserving financial stability and consumer protections are high priorities for the Government and now they’ll be reflected more prominently in the work of the regulators too.