Consumers unprotected if regulators disconnect on SBR
Consumers may be left unprotected if the regulators do not jointly implement the Standard Business Reporting (SBR) framework under new super fund reporting requirements.
IQ Group chief executive Graham Sammells said if the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) did not link up and implement the reporting requirements together, consumers would be left exposed.
New reporting requirements will turn APRA into a product regulator as well as a prudential regulator for funds, Sammells said.
The regulators will be forced to review their relationship in light of ASIC's responsibilities to the consumer, he said. The SBR framework should be jointly implemented as the data is being collected in an ad hoc fashion, according to Sammells.
"Enhancing SBR for the superannuation industry, with a whole-of-government focus, will be a key enabler for the industry to meet the requirements as efficiently as possible, and to minimise the costs for members," he said.
It would also smooth out the "subtle but important differences" between data elements reported to ASIC and APRA, Sammells said.
The level of detail required would also require a wholesale change in third-party contracts, as it would often be more than funds and custodians currently collected.
"Everything on the product dashboard and fund advertising will have to be based on the data reported to APRA. Funds need to have clear protocols governing the use of the data, data dictionaries, and means by which they are kept up-to-date."
There needs to be traceability from source to report, with robust processes that ensure the requisite reviews and approvals," he said.
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