ASIC begins second round licensee survey
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) will shortly begin surveying the second tier of Australian financial services licensees following the September release of its phase one study.
The original survey analysed the business processes of Australia's 20 largest licensees, and the next 30 will be the subject of the new survey.
ASIC said the new survey will be smaller than the original one and will cover the licensees' business models, training of representatives, monitoring and supervision of representatives, product and strategic advice, and complaints handling and compensation arrangements.
ASIC commissioner Peter Kell said the review will inform the financial advisory sector about current industry trends and ASIC's compliance expectations.
"Many of the top 20 advisory firms that participated in the first phase of the review reported finding the exercise beneficial and helpful for improving their practices," he said.
Licensees will have three months from the year's end to respond to the ASIC questionnaire, which will be sent to them over the next week, ASIC stated.
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