ASIC ANNU ASIC A L REPO R T 07–08 ASIC acHIEVEMENTS RECOGNisED 2007–08 Annual reporting Other communication Environmental management ASIC Annual Report 2006–07 Annual Report Awards from the Society of ASIC’s Sydney site is certified to Gold Award 2008 for overall Technical Communication’s International Standard (ISO excellence in annual reporting Australian and International 14001: 2004 Environmental from Australasian Reporting competitions Management Systems). Awards Inc. ASIC Summer School 2007 07–08 (program and directory) ASIC Annual Reports and Distinguished, Australia 2007 publications for companies Distinguished, International 2007 available from www.asic.gov.au or phone 1300 300 630 Your company and the law Excellence, Australia 2007 Consumer publications available Super decisions from www.fido.gov.au or phone Distinguished, Australia 2007 1300 300 630 Excellence, International 2007 CONTENTS CONTacT DETaiLS Letter of transmittal 01 How to find ASIC Visit us Melbourne: Level 24, ASIC at a glance www.asic.gov.au 03 120 Collins Street, Melbourne. Our key achievements 04 (For company registration, document lodgment, For consumers and investors searches and fees, visit the FIDO Centre, Chairman’s report 06 www.fido.gov.au Ground Floor, 120 Collins Street, Melbourne.) Financial summary 10 www.understandingmoney.gov.au Sydney: Level 18, 1 Martin Place, Sydney. Regulating during market turbulence 12 (For company registration, document lodgment, Major enforcement actions 14 How to contact ASIC searches and fees, visit Level 8, City Centre Tower, 55 Market Street, Sydney.) Consumers and retail investors 16 Email us at [email protected] Adelaide: Level 8, Allianz Centre, Capital market integrity 20 Phone us on 1300 300 630 • To report misconduct in financial markets, 100 Pirie Street, Adelaide. Facilitating capital flows 24 financial services and products, companies, Brisbane: Level 20, Helping small and medium business 26 company directors, auditors, liquidators and Commonwealth Bank Building, company administration, and for information 240 Queen Street, Brisbane. Lifting operational effectiveness 28 on consumer rights, ASIC policy and Strategic Review 30 procedures. Canberra: Level 5, Minter Ellison Building, • For help with company annual statements, 15 London Circuit, Canberra. ASIC in the Community 32 notification of changes to company details, Darwin: Level 7, TIO Centre, 24 Mitchell Street, Our people 34 routine company compliance, document Darwin. lodgments, deregistration and reinstatements. Organisation 35 Hobart: Level 2, Telstra Centre, Commissioners 36 Mail us 70 Collins Street, Hobart. • For Commissioners, financial economy Senior executives 37 stakeholder and deterrence teams, Strategy, Perth: Level 3, 66 St Georges Terrace, Perth. Regional Commissioners 38 Chief Legal Officer, Corporate Affairs and Traralgon: ASIC Information Processing Centre, Shared Services, or if you wish to complain or Where ASIC fits in the regulatory picture 14–22 Grey Street, Traralgon, Victoria. 39 report misconduct: Procurement 42 ASIC, GPO Box 9827 in your capital city ISBN 978-0-9805021-5-2 ASIC’s people 43 • For real economy matters including company ASIC Annual Reports are available from ASIC Service Charter 50 annual statements, notification of changes to www.asic.gov.au or phone 1300 300 630. Audit Committee and audit, company details, routine company assurance and compliance services 53 compliance, document lodgments, For questions about this Annual Report, deregistration and reinstatements: contact: Appendices 54 ASIC Information Processing Centre Project Director, Annual Report ASIC outcomes and outputs 56 PO Box 4000 Phone: 03 9280 3200 Six-year summary 62 Gippsland Mail Centre VIC 3841 Fax: 03 9280 3444 Email: [email protected] Financial Statements 64 Glossary 129 Index 130 Contact details 133 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL ASIC ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08 01 a year of change Our people at work. 02 ASIC AT A GLANCE ASIC ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08 a year of change ASIC AT A GLANCE Our role To enforce company and financial services laws. Our aims are outlined in section 1(2) of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (ASIC Act). Our vision For our functions in the financial economy, to exercise our powers to make a real difference in improving confidence in financial market integrity and protecting investors and consumers. For our functions in the real economy, to deliver outstanding and cost-effective services. For our priorities and outputs, see pages 14–31. Our 2007–08 achievements For our highlights of the year, see pages 4–5. Our activities Within the priorities we have set, during the year under review we regulated Australia’s 1.6 million corporations, 4769 financial services businesses and 17 financial markets. We worked to improve Australia’s financial system, covering superannuation, managed funds, insurance, credit, deposit- taking and financial advice. We cooperated with Australian and international regulatory bodies, see page 24. Our people At 30 June 2008, we employed 1669 ongoing and non-ongoing employees in offices in every state and territory, see pages 34 and 43–44. Our budget Our operating expenditure budget for 2007–08 was $274 million, see page 10. Governance We are a Commonwealth Government body, led by three full-time Commissioners, accountable pursuant to the ASIC Act to the Minister and the Parliament and through administrative and judicial review, see page 39. ASIC AT A GLANCE ASIC ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08 03 a year of change OUR KEY ACHIEVEMENTS FINANCIAL ECONOMY Consumers and Capital market Facilitating 1retail investors 2integrity 3capital flows • assisted investors to better • increased surveillance to curb • implemented trans-Tasman understand unlisted, unrated insider trading and other Mutual Recognition of debentures market abuses Securities Offerings (MRSO) • actively pursued wrongdoing • worked with the Australian • made significant progress in in financial services, Securities Exchange (ASX) to mutual recognition, including corporations and speed up investigations from with the United States superannuation funds referrals • reached agreement with the • promoted investor education • actively prosecuted cases of China Banking Regulatory and financial literacy insider trading and market Commission (CBRC) manipulation • reached agreement with the • pursued significant Hong Kong Securities and enforcement matters Futures Commission on the (e.g. AWB, James Hardie) mutual recognition of collective investment schemes STAKEHOLDER SURVEY Our Strategic Review drew The stakeholder survey was The full survey results are on the views of the 1250 conducted by the Allen available at www.asic.gov.au/ respondents to a stakeholder Consulting Group and strategicreview. survey conducted to help stakeholder responses were identify what we did well collected through three and where we needed to separate surveys of business, improve. consumers and ASIC staff. Some of the results of the business and consumer surveys are presented in this report. 04 OUR KEY ACHIEVEMENTS ASIC ANNUAL REPORT 2007–08 a year of change REAL ECONOMY Helping small Lifting Strategic and mediumMaking information operational Review about companies available 4business to the public (60) 5effectiveness 6 Quickly and efficiently receiving, processing and storing information, given to ASIC (55) Helping investors and consumers participate in the financial system • increasedin an informedefficiency and confident and way (52) • selected a new enterprise • completed stakeholder survey lowered costs through a content management system Improving the performance • committed to increase range of innovationsof the financial that system and as part of a 4-year phased investment in research reduced red tape entities within it (53) technology upgrade Doing what needs to be done and analysis • introduced electronicto enforce the law (49) • increased direct liaison with • created a new, registration and payment industry sectors we regulate Efficiently administering the flatter structure service for approximately law with a minimum of • finalised 11,436 complaints 200,000 of theprocedural documents requirements we (44) • established 20 outwardly receive and Contributingprocess each to the yearefficiency focused stakeholder and of the economy and reducing costs for business (42) deterrence teams covering • targeted phoenix trading the financial economy % of sample 0 20 40 60 80 100 • introduced a 1300 number • increased investment in for all our clients % Well % Neutral % Poor training and development to build staff credentials ASIC’s overall performance Source: Allen Consulting Group survey of ASIC stakeholders Overall how well do you think ASIC has performed? (55*) 45% 31% 24% Making information about companies available 56% 23% 21% to the public (60) Quickly and efficiently receiving, processing and storing information, 49% 24% 27% given to ASIC (55) Helping investors and consumers participate in the financial system 42% 29% 29% in an informed and confident way (52) Improving the performance of the financial system and 38% 37% 25% entities within it (53) Doing what needs to be done to enforce the law (49) 34% 35% 31% Efficiently administering the law with a minimum of 30% 30% 40% procedural requirements (44) Contributing to the efficiency of the economy and reducing 21% 35% 44% costs for business (42) % of sample 0 20 40 60 80 100 % Well or very well % Neutral % Poor or very poor * Number in brackets = mean score OUR KEY ACHIEVEMENTS ASIC ANNUAL