AUSTRALIA: ASIC Updates Guidance for Funds Management Industry

Friday August 3 2018

On 31st July 2018, the Australian Securities & Investment Commission (ASIC) released a suite of seven new and updated regulatory guides to provide comprehensive guidance to the funds management industry. The guidance has been updated for changes arising from the Asia Region Funds Passport and brings all of ASIC’s funds management policies up to date to help promote industry-wide consistency.

In October 2017, ASIC released CP 296 with proposals to publish the six new and updated regulatory guides to reflect ASIC’s current views on these topics. We also proposed to include the guidance in the appendix to RG 134 in a separate regulatory guide, and have implemented that proposal by publishing RG 137 . ASIC’s proposals applied to managed investment schemes, CCIVs, Australian passport funds and certain other AFS licensees involved in funds management.

The Asia Region Funds Passport will provide a multilaterally agreed framework to facilitate the cross-border marketing of passport funds across participating economies in the Asia region. The legislative changes for the Asia Region Funds Passport have been implemented in Australia through the Corporations Amendment (Asia Region Funds Passport) Bill 2018. The Asia Region Funds Passport is an initiative of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Group (APEC).

The CCIV regime is proposed to be implemented in Australia through amendments to legislation, including the Corporations Act.
The CCIV regime will be an optional alternative to the existing managed investments regime in Ch 5C of the Corporations Act.
The updates are designed to help the funds management industry to access the Asia Region Funds Passport. The passport is designed to provide investors with access to funds from participating economies throughout the Asia region.

The new and updated regulatory guides are:

• Regulatory Guide 131 Funds management: Establishing and registering a fund (RG 131)
• Regulatory Guide 132 Funds management: Compliance and oversight (RG 132)
• Regulatory Guide 133 Funds management and custodial services: Holding assets (RG 133)
• Regulatory Guide 134 Funds management: Constitutions (RG 134)
• Regulatory Guide 136 Funds management: Discretionary powers (RG 136)
• Regulatory Guide 137 Constitution requirements for schemes registered before 1 October 2013 (RG 137), and
• Regulatory Guide 138 Foreign passport funds (RG 138).

Click on the link above for further information.