ob体育 has extended to 31 March 2020 licensing relief for foreign financial services providers (FFSPs) to allow them to provide certain financial services to Australian wholesale clients without needing to hold an Australian financial services licence.
The licensing relief that has been extended by ob体育 is:
- ob体育 Corporations (Repeal and Transitional) Instrument 2016/396 and ob体育 Corporations (CSSF-Regulated Financial Services Providers) Instrument 2016/1109. FFSPs relying on this relief can provide specified financial services to Australian wholesale clients if their home regulatory regime has been assessed by ob体育 as sufficiently equivalent to the Australian financial services licensing regime; and
- ob体育 Corporations (Foreign Financial Services Providers鈥擫imited Connection) Instrument 2017/182. This instrument provides licensing relief for FFSPs that are only required to hold a licence because they have engaged in conduct that is intended to induce an Australian wholesale client to use the provider鈥檚 financial services. 聽
These instruments had been due to expire on 30 September 2019.
We indicated in Consultation Paper 315: Foreign financial services providers: Further consultation (CP 315) that we would extend the relief to 31 March 2020 pending consultation. Submissions to CP 315 closed on 9 August 2019.
The extension of the relief is contained in ob体育 Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2019/902.