The Regulatory Reform Onslaught Continues

2013 is shaping up to be a major year for reforms and consultations in the financial sector. In the last few weeks alone three announcements/releases have taken place, namely:

• Changes to disclosure requirements under the National Consumer Protection Act 2009 '€“ Treasury Discussion Paper released 8 April 2013
• Disclosure requirements for small amount credit contracts - Treasury Discussion Paper released 24 April 2013
• Treasury response to Phase II Submissions '€“ Treasury Discussion Paper released 24 April 2013

And, perhaps the biggest surprise of the lot:

• "A review of the benchmarks for industry-based consumer dispute resolution schemes" '€“ announced by the Assistant Treasurer in media release on Wednesday 24 April 2013

This dispute resolution review follows close on the heels of ASIC's review of EDR Schemes where the consultation period has only just finished.