ASIC creates legal immunity escape hatch

ASIC/

24 February 2021
| By Mike |
image
image image
expand image

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has broken new ground by providing scope for people to be granted immunity for dobbing in market misconduct to the regulator. 

ASIC has released an “immunity policy” which it says covers certain contraventions of the Corporations Act, which includes serious offences such as market manipulation, insider trading and dishonest conduct in the course of carrying on a financial services business. 

It will allow people to seek immunity from both civil and criminal proceedings by helping ASIC identify and take enforcement action against specific markets and financial services breaches. 

Under the policy, immunity will only be available to the first individual who satisfies the immunity criteria and reports the misconduct to ASIC prior to commencement of an investigation into the conduct. 

However, ASIC said individuals who did not meet the criteria for immunity were still encouraged to cooperate with ASIC and would be given due credit for any cooperation received. 

It said it would not be providing immunity from any administrative or compensation actions. 

“Any cooperation provided by an individual will be considered in determining whether to take administrative action against the individual,” ASIC said. 

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest news and developments in wealth management industry

MARKET INSIGHTS

So we are now underwriting criminal scams?...

5 months ago

Glad to see the back of you Steve. You made financial more expensive, not more affordable as you claim, and presided ...

5 months 1 week ago

Completely agree Peter. The definition of 'significant change is circumstances relevant to the scope of the advice' is s...

7 months 1 week ago

The FSCP has issued a written direction to an adviser who charged clients “extraordinary fees” for inappropriate and conflicted advice, as well as encouraged them to swit...

1 week 6 days ago

ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of an advice firm associated with Shield and First Guardian collapses, and permanently banned its responsible manager. ...

3 weeks 2 days ago

ASIC has confirmed the industry funding levy for the 2024–25 financial year, and how much licensees can expect to pay....

3 days 19 hours ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
2
DomaCom DFS Mortgage
95.46 3 y p.a(%)
5