ASIC announced that its 2022-23 priorities would focus on improving the operation of the Reportable Situations regime (formerly, the ‘Breach Reporting’ regime).

The regime, which applies to Australian Financial Services (AFS) Licensees and Credit Licensees, is brought into effect by Regulations Guide 78 (RG 78).

In late April, ASIC rolled out the first phase of changes to RG 78. These changes are designed to provide practical guidance to improve the standard of compliance across the industry and come as direct response to feedback received through consultations held with industry stakeholders throughout 2022.

In summary, the changes to RG 78 encompass the following elements of the reporting regime:

1. Circumstances for grouping multiple reportable situations into a single report.
2. Guidance on how to describe reportable situations.
3. Guidance on when to update ASIC on reported breaches.
4. Guidance on investigation triggers and how to establish the root cause of a breach.
5. Guidance on what constitutes a ‘similar’ reportable situation.
6. Guidance on how to calculate the number of clients affected by a breach.
7. Guidance on withdrawing or correcting a report submitted to ASIC.

King Irving is working diligently with our clients to ensure their Compliance Plan and Framework (CP&Fs) and internal reporting systems closely align with these changes.

For assistance or advice with structuring a compliance system that suits your business and which aligns with ASIC’s updated obligations, get in touch with the King Irving team today.