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Financial Services AU
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August 14, 2026
Senator Sharma Slams 'Arrogance' Of Diversa Bonus Payout
Liberal Senator Dave Sharma has used parliamentary privilege to accuse Diversa Trustees of "astonishing arrogance" for awarding large management bonuses while members invested $300 million into the collapsed First Guardian, and calling for swift regulatory action.
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August 14, 2026
Fed Court Admits to Underpaying Casuals Due to Payroll Error
The Federal Court of Australia has admitted to underpaying almost 250 of its casual employees due to a "payroll configuration issue," requiring about $77,000 in remediation payments.
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August 14, 2026
KPMG Backs Audit Licence, Against Non-Auditing Service Ban
KPMG Australia said that it supports licensing audit firms but warned against banning auditing firms from offering non-auditing services or forcing them to impose operational or structural separation between those offerings, in its response to an inquiry driven in part by its own handling of whistleblower allegations.
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August 14, 2026
Former KPMG Execs Refuse To Admit Failures At Inquiry
Former KPMG senior executives have rejected claims they failed to carry out their professional obligations and uphold ethical standard during a parliamentary joint committee investigating whistleblower allegations on Friday.
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August 14, 2026
HSF Kramer Sees Rise In Minority Sell-Downs In M&A
Australian private companies' exit deals are increasingly including minority stake sales and special purpose investment funds as sovereign wealth funds expand into the market, according to an HSF Kramer report analysing deals it acted on in 2025.
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August 14, 2026
Dexus, Macquarie To Reconsider KPMG Audits on Data Misuse
Senior executives at KPMG Australia clients Macquarie and Dexus told a parliamentary joint committee on Friday they are considering retendering their audit contracts amid the auditing giants continued lack of transparency over misuse allegations with key information emerging through the media and senators.
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August 13, 2026
Arrium Judge Won't Exclude Key Class Expert
A Victorian Supreme Court judge ruled at trial Thursday that a shareholder class suing over allegedly misleading financial reports made by collapsed steelmaker and miner Arrium Ltd could continue to use a key valuation expert supporting their case, rejecting the defendants' claims that he acted outside his expertise.
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August 13, 2026
HWL Ebsworth Can't Halt Ex-Partner's Age Discrimination Suit
A Supreme Court of Victoria judge has dismissed an application by HWL Ebsworth (HWLE) to permanently stay an age discrimination claim by a former partner, then aged 66, who was excluded from a proposed initial public offer of the law firm and later expelled from the partnership.
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August 13, 2026
CPA Australia Wants ASIC To Have Direct Auditor Oversight
Australia's peak accounting body has urged the Federal Government to grant ASIC "direct regulatory standing over audit firms" in a government submission arguing all firms should be registered with ASIC, rather than the auditors, alongside mandatory minimum inspections.
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August 13, 2026
Judge Rules McPherson, Ex-CEO Liable Over Sales Disclosure
The Federal Court of Australia has found a skincare and consumer goods company misled investors by breaching its continuous disclosure obligations over forecasts for Dr LeWinn's skincare during a COVID-era sales slump, while its former CEO breached his duty of care by failing to ensure investors were informed in a timely manner.
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August 13, 2026
Sequoia Cancels Dividend Amid Interprac Legal Woes
Sequoia Financial Group has cancelled its interim dividend due to legal proceedings including ASIC's Federal Court lawsuit against its subsidiary Interprac for alleged oversight and compliance failures in directing customers to the collapsed Shield and First Guardian superannuation funds.
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August 12, 2026
Former KPMG Execs, Allens, Ashurst To Front KPMG Hearing
Six former KPMG executives, lawyers from Allens and Ashurst, ASIC's Chair Sarah Court, and senior Macquarie, Optus, Westpac and Dexus staff will appear before a second parliamentary joint committee into the KPMG audit scandal in Canberra this Friday.
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August 12, 2026
Ex-CFO Says Adgemis Knew $78M GST Claims Were Fraudulent
The former CFO of Jon Adgemis' personal property investment vehicle JAGA Group has told the Federal Court of Australia the former publican knew $78 million in GST claims were incorrect, but viewed them as "short term loans" from the Australian Tax Office.
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August 12, 2026
ASIC Financial Reporting Misconduct Sweep Hits Hudson
ASIC's crackdown on financial reporting misconduct has resulted in a fourth company hit with a penalty this week, with a New South Wales local court handing recruitment firm Hudson Global Resources a $270,000 fine for failing to file its financial reports for three years.
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August 12, 2026
ASIC Greenwashing Case Ends In $7.3M Fiducian Fund Fine
The Supreme Court of New South Wales has ordered a Fiducian Group managed fund to pay $7.3 million for misleading conduct over a purported ethical fund, marking the first time a greenwashing civil penalty has been handed down for duty of care and diligence failures.
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August 12, 2026
ASIC Warns Consumers Of Yepbit False Asset-Freeze Claim
ASIC has warned consumers against engaging with the unlicensed digital asset and cryptocurrency trading platform Yepbit after the corporate regulator said it had received several reports from investors unable to withdraw their funds.
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August 12, 2026
ASX Shareholder Plans Derivative Action On CHESS Failures
The ASX is facing a potential shareholder-led action in the Federal Court of Australia over the shambolic roll-out of its upgraded CHESS platform, weeks after Australia's largest stock exchange was fined $20.5 million for misrepresenting the project's progress following an ASIC investigation.
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August 11, 2026
Meta Spoiled Evidence In Facebook Scam Ad Suit, Judge Says
A California federal judge has sanctioned Meta, finding the company failed to preserve key evidence in a lawsuit by Australian businessman Andrew Forrest over fraudulent Facebook advertisements that falsely used his name and likeness to promote cryptocurrency and investment scams, saying the spoliation prejudiced Forrest's case.
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August 11, 2026
Arrium Class Must Prove All Units Were Impaired, Judge Says
A Victorian Supreme Court judge hearing a shareholder class action trial over allegedly misleading financial reports made by collapsed steelmaker and miner Arrium Ltd ruled on Tuesday that the class must specifically prove that all the company's business units faced financial impairments, narrowing its potential path for winning the case.
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August 11, 2026
ASIC Publishes Liquidator Reprimand Over Invalid Appointment
A liquidator disciplinary committee has publicly reprimanded registered liquidator Simon John Thorn for "failing to adequately carry out his duties" as administrator of Premier Energy Resources Pty Ltd, which included making reasonable enquiries to confirm he had been validly appointed and notifying the court of his valid appointment.
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August 11, 2026
Judge Won't Issue Interim Gag In 'Deposit Flicking' Dispute
A New South Wales Supreme Court judge has declined to make an interim order preventing Jared Zak, founder of conveyancing firm Dott & Crossitt, from publicly calling the business model of law firm Agency Settlements illegal.
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August 11, 2026
Norton Rose Fulbright Taps Ex-Baker McKenzie M&A Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright has tapped Baker Mckenzie senior transactional law partner Kate Jefferson to join the firm's Sydney office to advise clients on cross-border and capital markets transactions across the Asia Pacific.
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August 11, 2026
AustralianSuper Hires Michelle Levy To Launch Advice Service
AustralianSuper, the nation's biggest superannuation fund, will launch a personalised financial advice service this year and has appointed Michelle Levy, who oversaw the Quality of Advice Review into making financial advice more accessible and affordable, as the entity's independent director.
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August 11, 2026
Bendigo Bank Agrees To Pay $8M Fine Over Alliance Hack
Bendigo Bank has agreed to pay an $8 million fine proposed by APRA for a series of authentication failures that allowed a hacker to steal $490,000 from 87 customers at subsidiary Alliance Bank in 2023, in a deal subject to Federal Court approval.
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August 10, 2026
AG Seeks Input on Foreign Bribery Reform, Corporate Offence
The Attorney-General's Department has commenced a compulsory statutory review into Australia's foreign bribery laws including the introduction of a new corporate offence for failing to prevent it.
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KPMG Aust. CEO Says Firm 'Absolutely Failed' Whistleblower
KPMG Australia CEO John Sams told a parliamentary committee on Friday that the firm had "absolutely failed" a whistleblower who had raised concerns about the firm misusing confidential client information to win more audit work, as the committee's chair questioned the firm's partnership structure.
Allens, Ashurst Stand By 'Unsatisfactory' KPMG Work
Allens and Ashurst Perkins Coie defended their legal advice and whistleblower investigations for KPMG Australia, despite senators at a parliamentary inquiry on Friday describing Ashurst's reports as "unsatisfactory" and Allens' work as "very poor."
Boral Liable In Investor Suit But Judge Waits Til CBA Ruling
Construction supplier Boral has been found liable for continuous disclosure breaches over its failure to correct flawed earnings guidance in a class action in the Federal Court of Australia, with penalties to be decided following an upcoming High Court ruling on market causation in the Commonwealth Bank of Australia shareholder case.
KPMG Aust. CEO Says Firm 'Absolutely Failed' Whistleblower
KPMG Australia CEO John Sams told a parliamentary committee on Friday that the firm had "absolutely failed" a whistleblower who had raised concerns about the firm misusing confidential client information to win more audit work, as the committee's chair questioned the firm's partnership structure.
Allens, Ashurst Stand By 'Unsatisfactory' KPMG Work
Allens and Ashurst Perkins Coie defended their legal advice and whistleblower investigations for KPMG Australia, despite senators at a parliamentary inquiry on Friday describing Ashurst's reports as "unsatisfactory" and Allens' work as "very poor."
Boral Liable In Investor Suit But Judge Waits Til CBA Ruling
Construction supplier Boral has been found liable for continuous disclosure breaches over its failure to correct flawed earnings guidance in a class action in the Federal Court of Australia, with penalties to be decided following an upcoming High Court ruling on market causation in the Commonwealth Bank of Australia shareholder case.
Editor's Picks
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Meta Spoiled Evidence In Forrest Facebook Scam Suit: Judge
A California federal judge has sanctioned Meta, finding the company failed to preserve key evidence in a lawsuit by Australian businessman Andrew Forrest over fraudulent Facebook advertisements that falsely used his name and likeness to promote cryptocurrency and investment scams, saying the spoliation prejudiced Forrest's case.
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KPMG Legal Doc Release 'Extraordinary' But Waiver Implied
A parliamentary committee's decision to publicly release KPMG Australia's privileged legal documents on public interest grounds may be unprecedented and lacks a clear legal basis, experts say, though KPMG may have inadvertently waived privilege.
Expert Analysis
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How Cos. Can Rework AML Controls After AUSTRAC Warning
The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre's recent risk snapshots on money laundering, financing of terrorism and proliferation risks underscore that with the convergence of artificial intelligence and real-time payment systems, Australia’s financial crime threats are becoming harder to detect through traditional means, say lawyers at Herbert Smith.
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Greenwashing Scrutiny Grows As Regulators Expand Focus
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission and Australian Competition and Consumer Commission continue to penalize investment companies and superannuation trustees for misleading environmental claims, signalling that greenwashing enforcement is an intensifying feature of Australia's corporate accountability framework, say lawyers at Ashurst Perkins Coie.
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Practice Leader Insights From Phi Finney's Joel Phibbs
Joel Phibbs, Phi Finney's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing practice lead, discusses the approach of banks when dealing with compliance, the challenges of delays in getting cases to trial, and why financial bodies' regulatory burden and the desire to lower costs using artificial intelligence seem like a recipe for major problems in the future.
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APRA's Warning Letter Means Directors Must Grasp AI Risks
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A recent letter from the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority outlines industry expectations for managing artificial intelligence-related risk, reminding boards and directors to work closely with their technology officers to ensure compliance with the regulator’s recommendations, says Claire Mallon at HWLE.
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Practice Leader Insights From HSF Kramer's Andrew Bradley
Andrew Bradley, leader of HSF Kramer's financial services regulatory practice in Australia, discusses managing mental health while working on a complex matter, the glaring need for further reform in the financial advice sector, and why this practice area may be the most dynamic and intellectually stimulating.
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Blue Star Shows Why Liquidators Need Approval Rule Reform
The recent Queensland Supreme Court decision in Blue Star Care v. Rimcroft highlights the uncertainty surrounding Section 477(2B) of the Corporations Act court approvals regime, meaning that until outright reform is implemented liquidators must make unsatisfactory choices between what is safe and what is in creditors’ best interests, says Robert True at Quinn Emanuel.
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What ACCC Data Reveals About Finance Deals
Recent Australian Competition and Consumer Commission data confirm that clearances under the new mandatory merger control regime are moving faster than anticipated and that the system’s waiver process works particularly well for low-risk transactions, making it a natural fit for the financial services sector, say lawyers at Squire Patton.
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Australian Payments Reg. Proposals Will Broaden Oversight
The Australian government’s recent payments regulation proposals for a more activity-based licensing framework will significantly expand the perimeter of entities, indicating that the regulators view payment systems, digital assets and tokenized financial infrastructure as part of a connected regulatory ecosystem, say lawyers at Corrs.
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Australia's Computer Patent Ruling Will Aid Global Companies
While courts around the world have struggled to articulate a technology-neutral test for patentability of computer-implemented inventions, a recent decision by Australia's top court offers a decisive answer, creating strategic opportunities for overseas applicants, say attorneys at Mallesons.
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Assessing The Significance Of Australia-EU's Free Trade Deal
The recently concluded Australia-European Union free trade agreement could be a springboard for a more ambitious initiative bringing together the EU and the economies of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, a critical mass capable of shaping norms across subsidies, sustainability disciplines and competition policy, says Alan Yanovich at Akin Gump.
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Decoding Arbitral Disputes: ICSID Enforcement In Australia
The Federal Court of Australia recently ruled for award creditors in Blasket Renewable Investments v. Spain in a judgment that explains how Australia's statute book operationalizes the promise of depoliticized enforcement under the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes Convention while accommodating, without yielding to, the centrifugal forces of European Union law, says Josep Galvez at 4-5 Gray's Inn.