BFCSA Blog

http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/news/give-more-ammunition-to-asic-costello Give more ammunition to ASIC: Costello 13 March, 2007 CORPORATE WRONGDOING may attract civil sanctions and higher penalties under a discussion paper released by the Treasury last week into corporate law reform.  The paper accords with a wider governmental strategy to explore ways of reducing regulatory burdens and simplify existing laws.   One proposal discusses the expansion of civil sanctions in corporate law to add more firepower to those policing dubious corporate behaviour, along with the possibility of increased penalties. The review is intended to strike a balance between the need to have strong sanctions that deter and punish corporate wrongdoing and protect the market’s integrity, as well as foster a competitive business environment.  In a speech given to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) summer school, Treasurer Peter Costello praised the strong record of the regulatory body. “ASIC’s enforcement record is a great testament to the assiduous work of...

http://www.crikey.com.au/2005/04/12/peter-costellos-asic-hypocrisy/ Peter Costello’s ASIC hypocrisy By Stephen Mayne|Apr 12, 2005   Queensland’s threat to withdraw its support for the Federal Corporations Law sparked treasurer Peter Costello to warn this would make Australia’s nine sets of laws more costly and complex than the whole of Europe. However, what Costello failed to mention is that since the Feds got control of the Corporations Laws, ASIC has become a profit centre, pulling in more than $400 million a year in revenue while costing less than $180 million a year to run.  Crikey blew the lid on this rort last July as you can see here when we wrote: Ever heard of a regulatory body which generates hundreds of millions a year in surplus revenue? Look no further than ASIC which gouges Australia’s big and small business alike and has handed over more than $1.5 billion in surplus revenue to the Howard Government’s budgets since...