Design and distribution obligations: Significant dealing notification requirements
Key points
Where a significant dealing outside of the target market occurs, issuers are required to notify ASIC with relevant information. This page explains how an issuer can notify ASIC of a significant dealing.
For all other types of notifications, including those related to other breaches of the design and distribution obligations, AFS and Australian credit licensees are required to submit reportable situations to us via the approved form available in the ASIC Regulatory Portal.
From 5 October 2021, new product design and distribution obligations came into force. These reforms require firms to design financial products to meet the needs of consumers and to distribute their products in a more targeted manner.
As part of these obligations, issuers must notify ASIC of a significant dealing (except excluded dealings) in a financial product that is not consistent with the product’s target market determination (TMD): see s994G of the Corporations Act. (On this page the term ‘issuer’ has the same meaning as in Regulatory Guide 274 Product design and distribution obligations (RG 274), being a person who is subject to the TMD requirements in s994B (including sellers in a regulated sale situation)).
Distributors must notify issuers when they identify a significant dealing that is not consistent with the TMD: see s994F(6).
Below are answers to frequently asked questions about significant dealing notification requirements.
A significant dealing is a dealing to clients outside of the TMD for a product. Whether a dealing is significant will be a matter for the issuer and/or distributor to determine in the particular circumstances.
RG 274 outlines factors that may be considered in determining whether a significant dealing exists, including:
proportion of consumers not in the target market
actual or potential harm to consumers, including amount of loss
nature and extent of inconsistency of distribution to the target market determination.
If you are not sure whether a dealing is significant, we encourage you to report the dealing to ASIC (if you are an issuer) or the issuer (if you are a distributor).
Issuers must notify ASIC in writing as soon as practicable, and in any case within 10 business days after becoming aware of a significant dealing. An online form is available in the ASIC Regulatory Portal.
The notification of a significant dealing could include:
date(s) of the significant dealing
description of the significant dealing
why the dealing is significant
how the significant dealing was identified
details of entities involved in the significant dealing
what steps, if any, have been, or will be, taken in relation to the significant dealing
If an update to a significant dealing notification is required the online form, available in the ASIC Regulatory Portal, will contain a field which allow users to advise of the previous submission reference number.
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More information
Regulatory Guide 274 Product design and distribution obligations (RG 274).
