ASIC today announced the establishment of its Markets Disciplinary Panel and the initial membership. This confirms ASIC’s readiness to assume responsibility for the supervision of real-time trading on Australia's domestic licensed financial markets on 1 August 2010.

The Markets Disciplinary Panel will function as a peer review body and has been established to deal with breaches of the Market Integrity Rules, which take effect on 1 August 2010. The Panel will exercise ASIC’s power to issue infringement notices and accept enforceable undertakings relating to breaches of the rules.

Ms Lisa Gay, a member of the ASIC Markets Supervision Advisory Panel and former General Counsel of Goldman Sachs JB Were, has been appointed as Panel Chairman. Please see ‘Background’ for more information about Ms Gay.

Panel members are appointed as delegates of ASIC Commissioners to determine breaches. The other members of the Panel are:

• Mr Richard Brasher (Associate Director, Equity Derivative Sales, RBS Equities (Australia), over 25 years in the industry, specialising in equity derivative strategies);
• Mr Ian Chambers (Head of Australian Equities, Morgan Stanley Australia, 29 years in the industry with a strong background in equities and derivatives);
• Mr Leigh Conder (General Manager, Financial Markets Operations and Equities & Margin Lending Operations, Commonwealth Bank, 25 years experience with a strong background in operations);
• Mr Geoffrey Louw (Head of Futures and Forex, Bell Potter Securities, 17 years in the industry with particular expertise in the futures market);
• Mr Simon Gray (Director, Strategy & Corporate Finance, Shaw Stockbroking, 11 years experience with a background in legal & compliance, supervision and corporate finance);
• Mr Michael Manford (Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Patersons Securities, Executive Chairman and CEO of a full service stockbroking firm with 31 years in the industry); and
• Mr Russell McKimm (Client Adviser, Patersons Securities, 33 years in the industry, managing broker-client relationships and providing financial advice).

All Panel members are also members of the ASX Disciplinary Tribunal. Panel members are currently employed in the industry and will not sit on a case if they have a conflict of interest. ASIC will appoint further individuals to the Panel as its work evolves.

ASIC has now also released its regulatory guide setting out the policies and processes relevant to the operation of the Panel.

Regulatory Guide 216 Markets Disciplinary Panel (RG 216) covers:

• how the Panel is established;
• which matters will be referred to the Panel for hearing and the possible issue of an infringement notice;
• what processes will be followed when a matter is referred to the Panel;
• the choices available to a person who is issued with an infringement notice;
• what approach we will take in relation to the possible settlement of a matter by way of either a negotiated infringement notice or the acceptance of enforceable undertakings; and
• what policies the Panel will apply in determining the level of penalties or other remedies under either an infringement notice or an enforceable undertaking.

It takes into account feedback from a number of stakeholders following public consultation in May this year. Please see Consultation Paper 136 Markets Disciplinary Panel (CP 136) and the feedback report on this consultation process, Report 207 Response to Submissions on CP 136 Markets Disciplinary Panel (REP 207).

Regulatory Guide 216 should be read in conjunction with Regulatory Guide 214 Guidance on ASIC market integrity rules for ASX and ASX 24 market (RG 214) which outlines ASIC's approach to the supervision of its Market Integrity Rules for the ASX and ASX 24 markets (the proposed new name for the Sydney Futures Exchange).

ASIC will shortly issue Market Integrity Rules for the National Stock Exchange of Australia, SIM Venture Securities Exchange (previously known as the Bendigo Stock Exchange), ASIA Pacific Exchange Limited and IMB Ltd.

For information on market supervision and surveillance go to www.asic.gov.au/market-supervision

Background

Ms Lisa Gay – Chairman, ASIC Markets Disciplinary Panel

Ms Gay is a member of the ASIC Markets Supervision Advisory Panel and has 20 years experience in the broking industry. She joined JB Were in 1990, becoming Corporate Counsel in 1992 and Partner in 1996. Ms Gay was later appointed as General Counsel of JB Were, managing the Legal & Compliance function, Company Secretarial function and staff superannuation of the JBWere Group. Following the JB Were/Goldman Sachs Australia merger, she was appointed as General Counsel to the Goldman Sachs JBWere Group, Management Committee and Board. She chaired the Environmental Social Governance Committee and Talent and Diversity Council (up until April 2010) and was a member of the Goldman Sachs JBWere Risk, Commitments, Partnership, Group Compliance and Operational Risk & Audit Committees.

Currently on Long Service Leave, Ms Gay will return to Goldman Sachs JBWere as Advisory Director – Policy and Regulation later in the year.

Prior to joining Goldman Sachs JB Were, Ms Gay was a research fellow at the University of Melbourne and worked as a solicitor. She is a member of the ASX Disciplinary Tribunal and Appeal Board. She is also a Trustee Board member of the Victorian Trust for Nature and a Director of Flora & Fauna International (Australia).