ASIC reports $31 million surplus

At the same time as financial advisers worry about the scale of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) levy the regulator has revealed it collected $2,062 million in fees, charges and supervisory cost recovery levies on behalf of the Government last financial year.

The regulator also reported a surplus of $31 million part of which was made up from $13 million in court cost recovery revenue.

ASIC revealed the number in its annual report at the same time s emphasising that the revenue was passed through to the Commonwealth and was not kept by the Commonwealth.

However, it noted that the $2,062 million represented a 12% increase over the 2022-23 financial year.

It said that approximately 99% of ASIC’s operating costs were recovered from the industries it regulates and that around 70% of the costs are funded through the industry funding model with the remaining 29% through fees and charges.

The annual report noted that in the last financial year $2.1 billion was collected, including $316 million through the industry funding models.

“All funds collected go to consolidated revenue and are not available to ASIC,” the report said.

It said that in 2023-24 ASIC reported a surplus of $31 million which was a result of a. number of factors including project delays, the receipt of court cost recovery revenue of $13 million and the appropriation of $12 million for capital projects.

The annual report said these items were offset in part by write-downs and impairments of $17 million, mainly relating to the Modernising Business Registers program assets which were reclassified as operational in nature following the outcome of the Government’s independent review.