Are you an issuer of superannuation or managed investment products issued to retail clients? Are you required to disclose fees and costs in accordance with the enhanced fee disclosure regulations? If so, ASIC has released minor amendments to Regulatory Guide 97 and extended the transitional arrangements.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has amended Regulatory Guide 97: Disclosing Fees and Costs in PDSs and Periodic Statements (RG 97) and the legislative instrument to extend the transitional timeframe due to COVID-19 and provide clarification on some technical policy positions.
This follows the major update to RG 97 that was released in November 2019 and several industry roundtable meetings held earlier this year.
In response to COVID-19, ASIC has made the following changes to the transitional arrangements for product disclosure statements (PDSs):
- PDSs given from 30 September 2022 must now comply with the new requirements;
- Issuers can elect to apply the new requirements from 30 September 2020; and
- Once elected, subsequent PDS must comply with the new requirements.
To clarify ASIC’s policy and positions, minor technical refinements were made in relation to the following:
- Disclosure of buy/sell spreads in periodic statements for collective investment products under Class Order [CO 14/1252];
- Disclosure of performance fees;
- Identification and treatment of derivative costs; and
- Significant event notice requirements.
ASIC also clarified definitions and amended the ‘Consumer Advisory Warning’ and ‘Example of annual fees and costs’.
The transitional arrangements for periodic statements remain the same.
The version of RG 97 that was released November 2019 and updated July 2020 can be viewed here.
How can we help
Hamilton Locke’s Funds and Financial Services team is experienced in providing high quality advice on regulatory matters. We assist financial product issuers comply with their disclosure obligations.
For more information, please contact Justin Gross, Samuel Jones or Jack Peterson.
The information contained in this article is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
