Super Alert – 13 June 2025: Paid parental leave superannuation regulations, ASIC legal action on alleged target market breach

Welcome to the weekly KHQ Super Alert. This week ASIC commenced legal action in relation to alleged contraventions of target market requirements, issued a media release on ongoing fee arrangements, and published a speech by its chair focusing on member complaints. APRA issued a letter to all trustees imposing information security requirements. Some legislative instruments on some technical matters were also registered.

ASIC – Chair speech on super member complaints

On 12 June 2025, ASIC’s Chair, Joe Longo, gave a speech at the AmCham Regulator Luncheon Series entitled ‘Customers are key – super trustees need to listen and act now’.

Complaints handling was a key focus of the speech, during which Mr Longo stated: ‘A trustee’s approach to complaints is a clear and meaningful measure of whether they’re focused on the interests of their members. It also indicates the maturity of the trustee’s approach to risk. That’s why ASIC has been urging industry to act on complaints for some time now.’

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Federal legislation – Paid parental leave superannuation regulations

On 12 June 2025, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Paid Parental Leave Superannuation Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2025 were registered on the Federal Register of Legislation, commencing on 13 June 2025.

According to the Explanatory Statement, the purpose of the Regulations is to make consequential changes to other legislation to ‘support the amendments made by the Paid Parental Leave Amendment (Adding Superannuation for a More Secure Retirement) Act 2024’.

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ASIC – DDO legal action – alleged target market breach

On 11 June 2025, ASIC issued a media release announcing that it has started court action against a financial services entity alleging that ‘it acted unlawfully by failing to take reasonable steps to ensure retail investors were in the target market for one of its investment products’.

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APRA – Requirements for information security obligations

On 10 June 2025, APRA issued on open letter to all board chairs of RSE licensees for action in relation to ‘Information Security Obligations and Critical Authentication Controls’, reminding them of their obligations under ‘Prudential Standard CPS 234 Information Security (CPS 234) and to require certain actions to be taken to confirm compliance with those requirements’.

By 31 August 2025, APRA requires all trustees to do the following:

• ‘Perform a self-assessment of the entity’s existing information security controls.’
• ‘Where robust authentication controls (including requiring MFA or equivalent controls for high-risk activities and privileged access) have not been implemented or are deficient:
  • Submit to APRA a material control weakness notification in accordance with paragraph 35(a) of CPS 234….
  • If a material control weakness is identified and notified to APRA, conduct a breach assessment…’.
• ‘Advise of the RSE licensee’s Accountable Person(s) under the Financial Accountability Regime (FAR) with responsibilities related to CPS 234 compliance, and if more than one, specify what aspects of compliance each of their responsibilities cover.’

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ASIC – Ongoing fee arrangements

On 6 June 2025, ASIC issued a media release in which it reminded financial advisers and superannuation trustees ‘to ensure they are complying with client consent requirements when entering into ongoing fee arrangements (OFAs)’. ASIC stated that it has ‘granted a limited no-action position in response to a specific issue raised by the advice industry about the inclusion of account numbers in a client’s written consent for the deduction, or arranging of the deduction, of ongoing advice fees’.

Further, ‘ASIC does not intend to take action for a breach of section 962S of the Corporations Act 2001 (Corporations Act) and section 99FA of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993 where:

• written consent was given by a client under section 962S of the Corporations Act for the fee recipient to deduct or arrange to deduct fees under an OFA from 10 January 2025 until 5 September 2025
• an account number was not included in the consent, and
• in the case of superannuation, a trustee deducted from the relevant member’s account the advice fees as set out in the consent.’

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Federal legislation – Family law interest rate determination

On 6 June 2025, the Family Law (Superannuation) (Interest Rate for Adjustment Period) Determination 2025 was registered on the Federal Register of Legislation. It commences on 1 July 2025 and contains an interest rate determination made by the Australian Government Actuary, under section 76 of the Family Law (Superannuation) Regulations 2025.

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