The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has reported its highest six‑month civil penalty total and an increase in misconduct reports for the second half of 2025, with outcomes linked to governance, product design and distribution, and claims and benefit processes across financial services.
In figures released on Feb. 25, for the period July 1 to Dec. 31, 2025, ASIC said courts imposed $349.8 million in civil penalties arising from its enforcement actions. The total is ASIC’s highest half‑yearly civil penalty result to date and follows proceedings against large banks, superannuation trustees, and other financial entities. ASIC chair Joe Longo said the figures reflect the regulator’s current approach to enforcement. “ASIC has secured record penalties in response to serious misconduct, and is protecting Australians and safeguarding trust and confidence in Australia’s financial system. Today, ASIC is one of the most active law enforcement agencies in the country. We are taking more cases to court, achieving record penalties, and protecting consumers,” Longo said.
ASIC also reported that approximately $583 million is expected to be delivered back to customers and investors through remediation, refunds, and payments associated with its reviews and investigations. This includes outcomes from work on excessive bank fees and from investigations into specific managed investment schemes. The regulator’s data indicates that these remediation programs span a range of financial products and customer segments, including low‑income customers in high‑fee accounts and investors in collapsed or underperforming investment funds.
ASIC highlighted several significant penalty decisions within the half‑year period. ANZ was ordered to pay a combined $250 million in penalties over what ASIC described as widespread misconduct and systemic risk failures affecting the Australian government, taxpayers, and almost 65,000 retail bank customers. ASIC said this represents the largest combined penalties it has obtained against a single entity. Industry superannuation fund Cbus was ordered to pay $23.5 million after the court found failures in processing members’ death benefits and insurance claims. The matter relates to administration of insurance‑related entitlements within the superannuation environment, including how member claims and benefits are handled.
RAMS Financial Group was ordered to pay $20 million for compliance failures related to arranging home loans. NAB, together with AFSH Nominees Pty Ltd, was ordered to pay $15.5 million following findings of hardship‑related failures affecting customers. ASIC also reported agreed remediation outcomes in the managed funds sector. Macquarie provided a court enforceable undertaking to pay $321 million to around 3,000 investors in the Shield Master Fund, and Netwealth agreed to pay $101 million to more than 1,000 investors in the First Guardian Master Fund.
In addition, ASIC said it had secured $161 million in refunds for millions of low‑income customers in high‑fee transaction accounts, including $68 million announced by Commonwealth Bank in December. ASIC’s intervention in private proceedings involving Libertas Financial Planning Pty Ltd (in liquidation) and Sequoia Financial Pty Ltd resulted in $975,000 being made available to support claims by investors affected by the collapse of the Sterling First group.
ASIC’s half‑year update also reported on criminal enforcement outcomes. The Supreme Court of Western Australia sentenced Western Australian fraudster Chris Marco to 14 years’ imprisonment following an ASIC criminal investigation. The matter remains subject to appeal. “This is the highest prison sentence imposed by an Australian court in relation to an ASIC criminal investigation,” Longo said. For the six‑month period, ASIC reported that it:
ASIC also referred to ongoing work on regulatory simplification, on public and private markets policy, and on a reform package with ASX focused on Australia’s market infrastructure, which together form part of the broader regulatory setting for financial and insurance markets. “While 2025 was a significant year, our work continues in intensity in the year ahead,” Longo said.
In a separate release issued on the same date, ASIC published its six‑monthly Reports of Misconduct (ROMs) data for July 1 to Dec. 31, 2025. The data shows an increase in the number of reports and a concentration of issues in corporate governance, financial services, and retail investor matters. Over the half year, ASIC received 9,686 ROMs, raising 13,036 individual issues. Corporate governance matters accounted for 40% of these issues, while those related to financial services and retail investors accounted for 44%. ASIC deputy chair Sarah Court said the figures are consistent with the regulator’s stated enforcement focus. “The figures point to an increase in concerns being raised about corporate governance issues. They underscore ASIC’s enforcement priorities, which include tackling governance and directors’ duties failures, reaffirming that stronger governance remains a top priority for ASIC,” Court said.
Within the corporate governance category, the issues reported included governance concerns within companies, failures to provide records to liquidators on company activities, fraud allegations, insolvency‑related matters, and conduct of registered liquidators. ASIC said it has a number of active investigations into governance failures and directors’ duties. More than 5,700 of the issues reported related to financial services and retail investor matters, covering areas such as product distribution, advice practices, disclosure, and account or investment handling.
ASIC reported that ROMs increased by 28% compared with the period from January to June 2025. The regulator said part of this increase reflects changes made to its website in June 2025, which made it easier for members of the public and market participants to lodge reports of suspected misconduct. “Reports of misconduct continue to be an important source of intelligence for ASIC. They help us identify key issues for consumers, investors, and creditors, and guide our decisions on potential criminal and civil action,” Court said.
For insurers, superannuation trustees, and intermediaries, the combined enforcement and ROMs data indicates continued regulatory attention on governance arrangements, product, and distribution oversight, and the handling of claims, benefits, and hardship across financial products. ASIC’s six‑monthly Enforcement and Regulatory Update and the ROMs data are available on the regulator’s website and provide further details relevant to boards, risk, and compliance functions across the Australian insurance and broader financial services sector.
