In a statement, the regulator said it had gained civil penalties totalling $159.8 million in the six months from July to December 2020 as a result of its court actions.
“This included ASIC’s two largest ever civil penalty outcomes – penalties totalling $57.5 million were imposed on two NAB subsidiaries for fees-for-no-service misconduct, and penalties totalling $75 million were imposed on OTC derivatives provider AGM Markets Pty Ltd and two of its authorised representatives for systemic unconscionable conduct,” ASIC said.
The regulator said it had seen a 64 per cent increase in civil penalty proceedings in the 2020 calendar year compared to 2018.
“During the July to December 2020 period, ASIC also continued to progress its enforcement work related to the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry,” ASIC said.
The regulator said case study referrals from the royal commission had resulted in a total of $77.65 million in penalties so far.
$160 million ASIC fines straight to consolidated revenue hey LNP.
160% Adviser Levy Increase Invoices due this week.
Disgusting double tax and crazy cost hit to Advisers who pay for the ASIC services to raise these fines but then receive $0 benefit.
What an absolute joke of a system to promote more affordable advice hey LNP.
The real problem is that all fines collected by ASIC are diverted to Consolidated Revenue. This procedure needs to be altered so that ASIC can access some portion of the fines it collects.
I am telling all my clients about this and the Liberal party destroying the financial planning industry and pushing up fees and pushing out advisers. I average 5 client meetings a week and most of these are couples so this is………….
approximately 400 VOTES…… then they tell their friends and then they tell their friends. All advisers need to do this are put the blame where it belongs, Liberal government and ASIC.
I will definitely not vote for LNP ever again after they have shafted our industry.We have taken a massive pay cut yet still expect us to pay an exhorbitant fee every year when it was the banks fault
This is a silly comment. We are getting pragmatic destruction now. Do you want idealogical destruction done by zealots with vested interests, i.e. industry fund representatives to do the destroying instead?
So no ASIC Levy next year? Yeah! Extrapolating from these numbers we should even look forward to a ‘dividend’ from ASIC next year instead of a Levy. Happy Days!
Instead of levying a general adviser fee each year on all advisers to cover ASIC’s costs, wouldn’t it make more sense for ASIC to cover their adviser and licensee oversight fees using these fines, or impose an added fee on those it successfully prosecutes? Or am I missing something?
Are these penalties being used to offset ASIC’s fees on planners? Will we get a refund of ASICs exorbitant fees since we seem to be funding their legal actions? If ASIC can bill us as quasi option/share holders to fund their actions, we should be entitled to our share of proceeds! Or are the proceeds conveniently siloed away or even tranferred to consolidated revenue?
used to keep lawyers employed
The criminal part of this being that the fines don’t go to ASIC, so we the advisers pay ridiculous levies for the ASIC funding to pursue the banks etc! Meanwhile the ASIC’s pathetic excuse to the Senate being that the increase in advice levies to advisers just being a timing issue! Advice regulation and the ASIC really is a broken structure.
$160 million straight to consolidated revenue hey LNP and ASIC.
Yet Advisers ASIC levy increases 160% in 3 years.
We pay taxes, we pay levies and we get over regulated. Great deal LNP & ASIC. NOT !!!
great so our adviser’s ASIC levy should be zero next year. in fact, they should be paying us – profit share!
It is hard to put into words – ASIC charges advisers to pay for litigation against banks, then is rightly proud of its wins.
The money goes to the state and ASIC will get about half of its legal fees back from the banks.
Who pays the other half? The advisers.
When ASIC loses, the advisers pay ASIC’s fees and half of the other side’s fees.
It is difficult to think of a more unjust arrangement than this – an endless stream of money coming from advisers for ASIC to engage in unrelated litigation.
Should we also pay for other government litigation? APRA’s litigation for example? Any other government body?
Question. don’t the banks also pay fees to ASIC? so aren’t the banks paying for their own law suits? and insurers to APRA and so on health funds, super funds. etc. these posts sounds like Advisers are paying for everything.
That’s right Michael. ASIC does absolutely nothing for me as a licencee except receive my annual financial reports. That used to cost about $600. It does even less for me as an adviser. However, I have just, in the last 24 hours, paid a total of nearly $7,500 for the 2020 licencee and adviser annual levies. Question. WHY???
They are paying for unrelated litigation and the payments are very large. Banks don’t have advisers but ASIC sues them about past misdeeds and asks non-bank advisers to pay for the litigation.
Answer – Banks are not in Advice.
As ASIC has received $160 million in civil penalties, which I assume the court cases were funded from the ASIC Annual Levy 19/20 paid for by licensees and advisers, are these civil penalty payments used to reduce the ASIC Annual Levy payable in the 20/21 year??
bonuses all round, free tax returns for everyone and lots of team bonding