ASIC spends $503,393 on an organisation design

Mike Taylor

Managing Editor and Publisher

10 March 2023

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has confirmed that it has spent $503,393.93 on a new “top level organisation design”.

The expenditure has been confirmed by ASIC in answer to a question on notice from NSW Liberal Senator, Andrew Bragg, who asked the regulator how much money had been spent on the restructuring proposal.

In confirming the expenditure figure, ASIC said it had engaged external consultants to “support the development of ASIC’s future organisation design”.

Bragg had posed the questions on notice as a result of media reports about the restructure and ASIC chairman, Joe Longo later told Senate Estimates that that the regulator had shared with staff the proposed top-level structure which had come out of an organisation review.

“There will now be a consultation process on the proposal with senior executives, and then with all levels of staff in March. We anticipate the agreed new structure will start to be implemented from 1 July 2023. We will, of course, advise everyone of our revised structure once it is finalised and will publish it on the ASIC website,” Longo said.

“The focus of the proposed new structure is to support ASIC in achieving our strategic and operational ambitions. There were recurring themes during the review, which included stakeholder feedback from past reviews, including the FRAA Report.”

Confirmation of the expenditure by ASIC comes against the background of the Treasury review of the Industry Funding Mechanism for ASIC and legislation being introduced to the Parliament covering the Compensation Scheme of Last Resort (CSLR).

The levy to fund the CSLR is expected to piggyback off the ASIC levy.