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Markets

FMI reform implementation

We have been working to implement the financial market infrastructure (FMI) regulatory reforms under the Treasury Laws Amendment (Financial Market Infrastructure and Other Measures) Act 2024 (the FMI Act).

Consultation on Regulatory Guide updates

On 20 April 2026, we published Simple Consultation 50 Proposed updates to RG 172, RG 249 and RG 268 (CS 50) which proposes updates to:

  • Regulatory Guide 172 Financial markets: Domestic and overseas operators (RG 172)
  • Regulatory Guide 249 Derivative trade repositories (RG 249), and
  • Regulatory Guide 268 Licensing regime for financial benchmark administrators (RG 268).

Our proposed updates to RG 172, RG 249 and RG 268 seek to:

  • reflect legislative reforms introduced by the FMI Act
  • ensure our guidance is ‘market neutral’ for financial market licensees where relevant, and
  • simplify and clarify our existing guidance where possible.

Submissions to CS 50 should be sent to submissions-fmi.reforms@asic.gov.au by 5pm (AEST) on 25 May 2026. 

Background

FMIs are the key entities that enable, facilitate, and support trading in Australia’s capital markets. FMIs include financial market operators, benchmark administrators, clearing and settlement (CS) facilities, derivative trade repositories and benchmark administrators.

On 27 March 2024, the Australian Government introduced the Treasury Laws Amendment (Financial Market Infrastructure and Other Measures) Bill 2024 (the Bill) into the Australian Parliament. On 9 September 2024 the Australian Parliament passed the Bill and on 17 September 2024 the Bill received the Royal Assent becoming an Act.

The table below broadly sets out when the provisions in the FMI Act commenced.

Items in the Act

Commencement date

FMI provisions in Schedules 1-3 of the FMI Act

17 September 2024 (the date of Royal Assent) or shortly thereafter

‘Fit, proper, capable and competent person standards’

6 months after 17 September 2024 (the date of Royal Assent)

FMIs and their stakeholders including shareholders, should review the provisions and consider any impacts for their business and operations.

The FMI Act implements the Financial Market Infrastructure Regulatory Reforms: Advice to Government from the Council of Financial Regulators, July 2020 which made sixteen recommendations to Government.

The FMI Act:

  • introduced a crisis management and resolution regime
  • enhanced ASIC’s and the RBA’s licensing, supervisory and enforcement powers, which provides ASIC with more capacity to monitor the ongoing conduct of FMI entities, identify risks as they emerge, and take appropriate action to prevent those risks from escalating, and
  • streamlined and transferred roles and responsibilities between the Minister, ASIC and the RBA.