Superannuation funds and insurers are expected to object to any Government move to increase the Financial Institutions Supervisory Levies to provide increased funding to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to specifically ramp up scrutiny of the banks.
Media reports have today suggested that the Government will deliver an additional $120 million in funding to ASIC in the May Budget to address concerns around the banks, with the primary source being the so-called “APRA levy”.
However the APRA levy is not only raised from the banks but from all other financial services businesses supervised by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), ASIC and the Australian Taxation Office.
The media reports followed an ABC interview with Finance Minister, Mathias Cormann, today in which he appeared to confirm increased funding for ASIC to “ensure it has appropriate powers and adequate resources to do its job”.
The Government has argued that an appropriately resourced ASIC has the capacity to deal with issues relating to the banks in similar or better fashion to a Royal Commission.
