"We have a window of opportunity now to influence the design of public and private markets to support Australia’s needs, not just for tomorrow but for the next five to 10 years," ASIC chair Joe Longo said in the regulator’s 2025-26 corporate plan.
Longo stressed that while ASIC is not "rushing to regulate", it must "ensure Australia’s capital markets are fit for the future".
"Building on our discussion paper on evolving capital markets, this year we will release a roadmap outlining how we propose to help attract investment to our markets while protecting investors and promoting the quality of Australia’s markets," Longo said.
InvestorDaily understands the regulator is preparing to release a progress report on private credit late next month, with further detail on surveillance findings to follow later in the year.
A draft report, seen by some market participants, is said to call out both good and bad practices and has reportedly been well received.
ASIC has already flagged that its survey of private credit managers will focus on governance, valuation, liquidity, conflicts of interest, fees, disclosure and distribution.
According to the regulator's corporate plan, it will supplement the "observations and findings from our surveillance activities" with insights from industry experts to inform the further actions it will take to maintain integrity, protect investors and promote the quality of Australia’s private market sector.
The outcomes are expected to remind private credit operators that existing laws already apply to them, with ASIC prepared to take providers to court if rules are breached.
The regulator is also believed to be working on updated regulatory guides and pushing for some sensible law reform to improve transparency and data standards in line with international markets.
"There is an important role for industry to play alongside ASIC in lifting private market practices, including through the application of existing and new industry standards," the regulator's corporate plan reads.
ASIC maps out five strategic priorities
ASIC outlined five strategic priorities within its corporate plan that will guide its work in 2025-29: improving consumer outcomes; strengthening market disclosure and professional conduct; supporting better retirement outcomes and member services; bolstering digital and data resilience; and driving integrity and transparency across markets.
Under the last of these, ASIC said it will focus on “cleanliness, access, and participation in our public markets” and “changing risks in our private markets”.
"We are building an ASIC-wide strategy to respond to the future shape of public and private markets," the plan reads.
On the IPO market, ASIC acknowledged regulatory settings were not the dominant factor influencing listings but said it was considering feedback from its earlier discussion paper on capital markets.
"In June 2025, we announced a trial to streamline the IPO process, underscoring our commitment to ensuring our public markets remain attractive to companies and investors," the regulator said.
"While we do not see regulatory settings as the dominant factor driving listed equity activity, we received lots of ideas in response to our discussion paper on Australia’s evolving capital markets and are considering further actions to support a strong and well-functioning market."
Longo earlier indicated that a comprehensive report responding to ASIC's February discussion paper on capital markets is due for release in November.
"I'd be very surprised if ASIC stops its private public markets work after November," he said earlier this month, while noting that next steps remain undecided.
