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Photorealistic image of suited mortgage brokers seated at children's school desks while an oversized teacher writes ‘The Best Interest Duty’ on a blackboard. Some take notes, others chat or look distracted, and one sleeps at his desk. Bold text reads ‘ASIC & MORTGAGE BROKERS’, illustrating ASIC's review of mortgage broker compliance and supervision.

ASIC’s mortgage broker review: When compliance processes fail to protect consumers

October 14, 2026

ASIC’s mortgage broker review exposes weaknesses in loan recommendations, compliance monitoring and complaints handling. For credit licensees, the challenge is to show that compliance processes do more than satisfy procedural requirements: they identify conduct risks, support good consumer outcomes, and provide meaningful assurance to management.
Black-and-white illustration of a distressed complainant confronting a suited financial professional, with a figure holding the scales of justice above. Text reads “AFCA’s Systemic Insights.”

AFCA Systemic Issues Report: 16 Lessons for Licensees

October 12, 2026

A system can be working exactly as designed and still be failing consumers. AFCA's latest systemic issues report (no. 9, 2026) exposes the gaps between compliance activity and effective controls. We unpack 16 findings and the practical questions licensees should be asking before the next complaint reveals what their monitoring missed.
Financial adviser in a dark suit gently draping a grey blanket over the shoulders of a distressed client, offering reassurance and support in a modern office.

AFCA’s reasonable care approach: insurance application risks for advisers and AFSL holders

October 12, 2026

AFCA's reasonable care approach highlights insurance application risks for financial advisers and AFSL holders. Learn how to strengthen application controls, preserve evidence and assess complaints involving inaccurate disclosures and declined insurance claims.
Blindfolded financial services professional holding a Consumer Complaints file and aiming a dart at a distant Resolution dartboard marked with dollar signs.

AFCA’s Approach to Calculating Loss in Financial Advice Complaints

October 12, 2026

How does AFCA calculate financial advice losses? We explore AFCA's approach to counterfactual portfolios, asset allocation, market versus compensable losses, and the implications for advice documentation, complaints management and AFS licensee governance.
Professional holding two identical Rubik’s cubes, illustrating legislative changes where the purported “old” and “new” positions are effectively the same.

New MDA Instrument. New Rules? Not Quite.

September 28, 2026

ASIC’s new MDA Instrument doesn’t rewrite the rulebook, but it does move a few important pieces. Here’s what MDA providers need to know about the changes to FSGs, Investment Programs, compliance notifications, contracts and client reporting — and what to review now.
Professional in a suit seated in a Thinker-like pose in a modern office, reflecting on leadership and professional judgement.

Leadership Is Judgement, Not Authority

September 28, 2026

Leadership is largely a test of judgement. For advisers, compliance professionals, directors and other gatekeepers, the harder question is who relies on that judgement — and what you owe them because they do. This article explores ten principles for better professional judgement: independence, humility, risk, incentives, patience, accountability and the stewardship of trust.
Financial planner standing still as humanoid robots rush past, illustrating AI FOMO and the fear of falling behind.

AI FOMO Isn’t a Strategy

September 23, 2026

AI adoption driven by FOMO is not a strategy. For AFSLs and credit licensees, the better approach is to redesign the work, identify where AI genuinely helps, preserve human judgement and scale only what the evidence supports.
Professionals in suits attend a classroom-style training session while a presenter stands beside a screen reading “Compliance 101: Reviews”, illustrating compliance reviews, monitoring and supervision.

One Bad File Is an Issue. Ten Demand an Explanation.

September 21, 2026

Individual advice-file failures rarely tell the whole story. Effective AFSL advice reviews should identify recurring weaknesses, concentrations and root causes — and test whether remediation actually prevents problems from recurring.
Professional in a dark suit runs between the legs of a giant businessman holding a magnifying glass, symbolising an attempt to evade regulatory scrutiny and oversight.

Harder to avoid: ASIC’s 2026 enforcement priorities are really a governance test.

September 12, 2026

ASIC’s 2026 enforcement priorities target specific conduct problems, but the bigger message for AFSL and credit licensees is governance. As ASIC becomes more data-driven, effective compliance increasingly means being able to show that risks are identified, controls work, patterns are detected and action follows when problems emerge.

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