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Read the calendar to stay up to date with upcoming ABA submissions.
Modernising Business Communications (legislation package)
24 January 2022
The banking industry remains supportive of the intent of the proposed changes and provides a range of suggestions to enhance the Bill’s clarity, while ensuring the provisions are future proof and enable beneficial and workable flexibility in the ways customers receive communications from their credit providers.
Download PDFAPRA Climate Vulnerability Assessment
31 December 2021 Private
The ABA supports the need for a Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA). Whilst we have undertaken varying levels of analysis already, the CVA will support comparability and a sector-wide perspective of climate vulnerability risk. Additionally, bank boards and management, and external stakeholders are increasingly seeking to understand progress made by Australian banks in climate risk management. Investors require increasingly detailed and comparable disclosure to inform their assessments.
Download PDFPrivacy Act Review – Discussion paper
17 December 2021 Private
The Privacy Act review is a once-in a generation opportunity to improve our nation’s information economy to support responsible innovation while empowering and protecting individuals. The ABA supports an approach to information privacy that harnesses all the potential benefits of data when it is used responsibly, while protecting data that can negatively impact society and individuals.
Download PDFOnline Privacy Bill – Joint Submission
13 December 2021 Private
The Australian Banking Association (ABA), Australian Finance Industry Association (AFIA), Financial Services Council (FSC), Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) (collectively, the joint signatories) welcome the opportunity to provide feedback on the Attorney-General’s Department’s (AGD) consultation on the Online Privacy Bill Exposure Draft.
Download PDFImproving the technology neutrality of Treasury portfolio laws
13 December 2021
The ABA remains very supportive of the Treasury’s ongoing efforts to improve the technology neutrality of the Treasury portfolio and look forward to further engagement on this, and subsequent, tranches of legislative change. Industry’s main comments regard allowing: • (under National Credit Code (NCC)) the ‘publish and notify’ and ‘in any other way agreed to’ methods of communications which are permitted under the Corporations Act; • more than one address to be used at any given time, which may be appropriate depending on the type of communications; and, • communications via secure portals instead of an email address, as securely housing certain notifications and communications within the credit providers (CP) information system, where it can be retrieved by customers after appropriate authentication, better balances the need for accessibility, security and technology neutrality.
Download PDFClarifying the treatment of trusts under insolvency law
10 December 2021 Private
The ABA supports sensible reforms being made to provide clarity, direction, and simplification for the treatment of trustees and trust structures during times of financial distress as this will ultimately lead to better outcomes for companies, creditors, employees, and the broader community.
Download PDFSA Powers of Attorney Bill 2021
9 December 2021 Private
We urge the South Australian Government to support the harmonisation of enduring powers of attorney and a national register of instruments being considered by the Meeting of Attorneys-General. We support the Government undertaking a broad awareness campaign to improve understanding of the purpose and use of powers of attorneys, including giving clear guidance to attorney(s) about their duties and obligations and explanatory information for organisations acting on the instruments.
Download PDFOnline Privacy
6 December 2021 Private
The ABA strongly recommends the Bill be amended to apply the OP Code more clearly and narrowly to the digital platforms on which the Inquiry focussed and the banking sector be expressly excluded from the definition of OP Organisations.
Download PDFNSW Fair Trading Act – Disclosure of Prejudicial Terms
1 December 2021 Private
The essence of the concern is that this New South Wales provision overlaps in application with Commonwealth legislation directed at similar subject matter, including for example mandatory disclosure regimes and the unfair contract terms (UCT) regime. The disclosure and UCT regimes and other similar consumer protection measures are contained in Commonwealth legislation based on referrals of power by states including NSW.
Download PDFRIC Farm Business Terminology Review
1 December 2021 Private
The ABA considers the existing definition of farm business is fit for purpose, and further expansion is unnecessary. ABA member banks are unaware of examples when a customer was deemed ineligible for a RIC concessional loan as a result of the existing definition. The ABA therefore confirms no gaps have been identified and the current eligibility for primary producers reflects the needs of the agricultural industry.
Download PDFARNECC – Modification of the Electronic Conveyancing National Law
24 November 2021
The ABA welcomes the changes included in the consultation draft and have some minor comments, contained in the attachment, regarding aspects of the drafting where further consideration may be warranted. The ABA is available to assist ARNECC in considering these issues.
Download PDFePayments Code further policy consultation
23 November 2021 Private
Specific points covered in the ABA’s response include: – Mistaken internet payments (MIP) – Unauthorised transactions – Modernising the Code – Privacy guidelines Also includes an attached response to Authentication Methods
Download PDFAT1 Deductions – Hybrid Mismatch Rules and Regulatory Capital
22 November 2021 Private
Points and commentary include: Deduction v entitlement to deduction Deduction for AT1 v deduction for AT1 in PE tax calculation Offshore Jurisdictions Proposed Methodology Scope of AT1 instruments Scope of RWAs
Download PDFDigital Identity Legislation
27 October 2021
ABA reiterates our view that there is significant potential economic benefit in the government’s digital identity initiative for consumers and businesses. The development of both government and private sector digital identity systems is needed to achieve wider adoption, and therefore realise the potential economic benefits of this government policy. That will continue to depend on whether the proposed legislative framework provides clarity, ensures robust privacy safeguards for users, provides flexibility to innovate and incentives to participate, while minimising the potential for conflicting or inconsistent data and privacy obligations for participants.
Download PDFModernising Document Execution
8 October 2021
Currently, significant delay, financial costs and opportunity costs result from the need to sign and witness deeds and statutory declarations on paper; these costs also result from inconsistent and uncertain regulations under Commonwealth, State and Territory laws. The ABA strongly advocates for the reforms to remain technology neutral and provide a single, consistent approach to executing deeds and statutory declarations. Otherwise the reforms may make it harder to use, and therefore disincentivise the use of, electronic execution.
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