Navigating financial services compliance: Insights from FSC and Objective

Though-provoking discussions with Blake Briggs, CEO of the FSC and Natasha Gray, Senior Business Solutions Consultant at Objective.

In a recent episode of InvestorDaily Uncut Podcast, host Maja Garaca Djurdjevic engaged in a thought-provoking conversation with Blake Briggs, CEO of the Financial Services Council (FSC), and Natasha Gray, Senior Business Solutions Consultant at Objective. The discussion centred around regulatory changes, cross-industry collaborations, and the evolving landscape of financial services.

TMD Template Evolution

The Target Market Determination (TMD) template changes take centre stage, with Blake Briggs highlighting the industry's collaborative effort to seamlessly implement regulatory frameworks. Blake commends this collective effort, stating, "Even the regulator is quite happy to acknowledge that without the common collective work that was done through the FSC, industry compliance would have been a much lower standard."

As the dialogue progresses, attention shifts to ASIC's Report 762, where stop orders emerge as instrumental in identifying industry concerns. Blake highlights the crucial role of these orders, triggering collaborative initiatives to elevate compliance standards. He emphasises the feedback received, particularly the importance of tailoring templates to specific products.

Tools for Efficient Business Processes

Natasha Gray sheds light on how Objective Keystone can help navigate changes prompted by ASIC's report. Discussing the challenges, she notes, "The main changes they're grappling with are things like the more variant in specific review triggers, the changes to the Amber rating. There are also data standards that have changed." Natasha further elaborates on how these alterations impact the transmission through aggregators like APIR, Iris, and Morningstar.

Natasha detailed Objective Keystone's features, highlighting content management, data integration, and verification as key components streamlining businesses' TMD processes. The platform's capabilities ensure efficient compliance with regulatory standards.

Cross Tasman Collaboration

Blake outlines the collaboration between FSC and its New Zealand counterpart, emphasising shared challenges and opportunities in regulatory issues, climate reporting, and ESG considerations. The forthcoming Trans-Tasman Leadership Summit is introduced as a promising initiative fostering dialogue between the two nations.

Natasha explores how Objective Keystone's work with New Zealand customers, particularly in climate risk reporting, could be leveraged for the benefit of Australian financial services firms, offering insights into future industry standards.

Looking Ahead to 2024

Blake expresses optimism for 2024, foreseeing progress on financial advice deregulation. While acknowledging potential election-related slowdowns, he asserts, "I don't think we'll see a slackening off or slowing down in regulatory change and compliance expectations, but with a bit of luck, there might be a bit of slowing in the legislative pipeline."

The Podcast provides a comprehensive exploration of recent developments, challenges, and collaborative efforts in the dynamic realm of financial services. To delve deeper into the insights shared by Blake Briggs and Natasha Grey, listen to the Podcast here.

To find out how Objective Keystone can help with your TMD and Climate-Related Disclosure contact us.