Inquiry into Financial Products and Services in Australia
Information about the Inquiry
Download this document (PDF 48KB)
Terms of reference
On 25 February 2009 the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and
Financial Services resolved to inquire into and report by 23 November 2009
on the issues associated with recent financial product and services
provider collapses, such as Storm Financial, Opes Prime and other similar
collapses, with particular reference to:
- the role
of financial advisers;
- the
general regulatory environment for these products and services;
- the role
played by commission arrangements relating to product sales and advice,
including the potential for conflicts of interest, the need for
appropriate disclosure, and remuneration models for financial advisers;
- the role
played by marketing and advertising campaigns;
- the
adequacy of licensing arrangements for those who sold the products and
services;
- the
appropriateness of information and advice provided to consumers
considering investing in those products and services, and how the
interests of consumers can best be served;
- consumer
education and understanding of these financial products and services;
- the
adequacy of professional indemnity insurance arrangements for those who
sold the products and services, and the impact on consumers; and
- the need
for any legislative or regulatory change.
In conducting its inquiry, the Committee has made a decision to focus
specifically on non-superannuation products and services.
Additional term of reference
On 16 March 2009 the Senate agreed that the following additional matter be
referred to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and
Financial Services as part of that committee's inquiry into financial
products and services in Australia, adopted by the committee on 25
February 2009 for inquiry and report by 23 November 2009:
The committee will investigate the involvement of the banking and finance
industry in providing finance for investors in and through Storm
Financial, Opes Prime and other similar businesses, and the practices of
banks and other financial institutions in relation to margin lending
associated with those businesses.
Definitions of key inquiry terms
Financial
product
Section 763A of the Corporations Act 2001 sets out the general definition
of a financial product as follows:
- ... a
financial product
is a facility through which, or through the acquisition of which, a person
does one or more of the following:
- makes a
financial investment ...;
- manages
financial risk ...;
- makes
non-cash payments ...
- ... a
particular facility that is of a kind through which people commonly make
financial investments, manage financial risks or make non-cash payments is
a
financial product
even if that facility is acquired by a particular person for some other
purpose.
- A
facility does not cease to be a financial product merely because:
- the
facility has been acquired by a person other than the person to whom it
was originally issued; and
- that
person, in acquiring the product, was not making a financial investment or
managing a financial risk.
Financial
service
Section 766A of the Corporations Act 2001 identifies when a person
provides a financial service:
- ... a
person provides a
financial service
if they:
- provide
financial product advice...; or
- deal in
a financial product...; or
- make a
market for a financial product ...; or
- operate
a registered scheme; or
- provide
a custodial or depository service...; or
- engage
in conduct of a kind prescribed by regulations made for the purposes of
this paragraph.
Making a submission
The Committee will report its findings to Parliament by 23 November 2009.
Written submissions to the inquiry close on
31 July 2009,
but public hearings will commence prior to this date and early submissions
are encouraged.
Please send written submissions to
corporations.joint@aph.gov.au
or by post to:
Committee Secretary, Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and
Financial Services
Department of the Senate
PO Box 6100 Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Emailed submissions should include full name, address and phone contact
details so we can contact you if necessary. Similarly, please include your
full contact details with any hard copy submission that you send in. It
assists the Secretariat greatly if you include these contact details on a
separate cover sheet, rather than in the body of the submission which will
be published.
There is no set format for submissions. The only requirement is that your
submission is relevant to, and addresses at least one of, the inquiry's
terms of reference. The committee may decide not to accept a submission if
it does not meet this requirement.
Please do not release your submission elsewhere until you have received a
formal acknowledgment letter from the Secretariat. Once the
Committee accepts your submission, it becomes a Committee document and is
protected by Parliamentary privilege. However, if you release your
submission without the Committee's permission and/or before the Committee
has formally accepted it, you will not be protected by Parliamentary
privilege. For more information about Parliamentary privilege, see
http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/pubs/briefs/brief11.htm
Publication of submissions
The Committee routinely makes submissions public during the inquiry,
including by posting them on the internet. However, the Committee will
consider requests to keep a submission confidential. Please indicate
very clearly on your submission if you want it to be kept
confidential. It is helpful to the Committee's considerations if you
also provide a brief reason for this request.
Adverse comment in submissions
Please be aware that,
if your submission reflects adversely on another person (for example,
accusing them of lying or corrupt behaviour) or organisation, the
committee will send the comment to the other person so they can reply.
This may apply even if the committee agrees to keep your submission
confidential.
Further information about making submissions is at
http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/wit_sub/index.htm
Public hearings
Information about public hearing dates and venues will be posted on the
inquiry web site as it becomes available. Hansard transcripts of completed
hearings will also be available after the event.
The committee, through the Secretariat, will issue invitations to
prospective witnesses on the basis of written submissions received.
Although only invited witnesses will have the opportunity to make verbal
presentations to the committee and answer the committee's questions,
anyone with an interest in the inquiry can attend and observe the
hearings.
The reporting process
As specified in the inquiry terms of reference, the Committee will report
to Parliament by 23 November 2009. A written report, including any
recommendations that arise out of the committee's inquiry and findings,
will be presented ('tabled') in both houses of Parliament. The report will
be made available to the public via the inquiry web site on the same day
that it is tabled. It will then be a matter for the Government to respond
to. Any written response from the Government will be linked to the inquiry
web site once it becomes available.
Further information
If you have questions about the inquiry that are not addressed by the above material, please contact the Secretariat:
Shona Batge (Committee Secretary)
Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Australia
Top
|