Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination No.15 of 2015

Administered by Department of the Treasury

Legislation au F2015L01250 Not in force Legislative Instrument

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Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination

No. 15 of 2015

 

Information provided by banks under certain reporting standards

 

 

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Prepared by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Act 1998 (APRA Act), s 57

The purpose of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination No. 15 of 2015 (Determination No. 15) made on 7 August 2015 is to enable APRA to disclose certain information provided by banks to APRA under the reporting standards listed in the Appendix. Releasing this information will be of use to regulators, policymakers, industry, researchers, analysts and other interested parties.

Legislative background

Subsection 56(5C) of the APRA Act provides that it is not an offence against s 56(2) of that Act to disclose information in a reporting document given to APRA under s 13 of the Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001 (Collection of Data Act) where APRA has determined, under s 57, that the document does not contain confidential information.

S 57 of the APRA Act gives APRA power to determine whether a document given under s 13 of the Collection of Data Act contains confidential information.  The section provides that before doing so APRA must give relevant entities or bodies, or their representative association, a reasonable opportunity to make representations as to whether information of the kind contained in the document is confidential, and take such representations into account (the consultation undertaken is discussed below).

Information covered by the determination 

Determination No. 15 provides that information given to APRA under the reporting standards listed in the Appendix (made under s 13 of the Collection of Data Act), being information received on or after the date of APRA’s last determination under s 57 in respect of information provided under the reporting standards listed in the Appendix and prior to the date of Determination No. 15, is non-confidential.  Determination No. 15 applies to all banks that have submitted data under the reporting standards listed in Attachment A.

Consultation

In accordance with s 57, APRA issued a consultation letter to all banks on 4 July 2012, as well as providing a link to this consultation letter on its website. The consultation letter provided all affected entities an opportunity to make representations on the proposed determination of confidentiality. This consultation period ended on 31 July 2012.

There were eight responses received from entities during the consultation. Of these, four supported or had no objections to the proposed determination and four raised concerns with the proposed determination.

The support for the proposed determination noted the benefits of increased transparency of information. Also highlighted were the general benefits of more relevant and useful data collections.

The main opposition noted in the consultation submissions concerned the potential ability of a data user to assess a bank’s performance outside Australia and transactions between a bank and its clients.

APRA considers, after taking affected entities’ representations into account, that Determination No. 15 not only helps APRA fulfil its obligations to the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but may also benefit regulated entities, other regulators, policymakers, the wider industry, researchers, analysts and other interested parties.

Statement of compatibility prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

A Statement of compatibility prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 is Attachment B to this Explanatory Statement.
Attachment A

 

Determination No. 15 covers the following reporting standards:

 

  • ARS 231.1a International Exposures: Locational (Assets) Part 1
  • ARS 231.1b International Exposures: Locational (Liabilities) Part 1
  • ARS 231.2 International Exposures: Locational Part 2
  • ARS 231.3a International Exposures: Consolidated (Domestic Entity)
  • ARS 231.3b International Exposures: Consolidated (Foreign Entity)


ATTACHMENT B

Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights

Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011

Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination

No. 15 of 2015

 

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instrument listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011.

Overview of the Legislative Instrument

 

The purpose of making this legislative instrument is to enable APRA to release the BIS International Exposures report, which will contain data in respect of March 2015.

 

Human rights implications

 

APRA has assessed Determination No. 15 against the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 (HRPS Act) and determined that only Article 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is conceivably of relevance to Determination No. 15.

Article 21 of the ICCPR prohibits the arbitrary or unlawful interference with a person’s privacy, family, home and correspondence, and attacks on reputation. Article 21 is exclusively concerned with prohibiting interference with the privacy and/or reputation of individual persons. It does not extend to the privacy and/or reputation of corporate entities.

Determination No. 15 will facilitate the disclosure of specific information provided to APRA by banks in accordance with certain reporting standards.  It does not involve the disclosure of information directly relating to individual persons. Further, APRA reviews all releases of data received under reporting standards to ensure that no information pertaining to an individual person can be deduced from the data.

Consequently, Determination No. 15 does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the HRPS Act.

 

Conclusion

 

This Legislative Instrument is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

 

Overview

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination No. 15 of 2015 was enacted to facilitate the disclosure of certain information provided by banks to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) under specific reporting standards. This legislative instrument, prepared by APRA, serves to ensure compliance with international reporting obligations to entities such as the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The underlying legislation is the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Act 1998 (APRA Act), specifically section 57, which empowers APRA to determine whether information in a reporting document does not contain confidential information. The policy objective is to enhance transparency and provide valuable data to regulators, policymakers, industry, researchers, analysts, and other stakeholders, while ensuring that no individual's privacy is compromised.

Scope and Application

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination No. 15 of 2015, established under the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority Act 1998, enables the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) to disclose specific information provided by banks under certain reporting standards to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. This determination applies to all banks that have submitted data under the specified reporting standards. The aim of this legislation is to facilitate transparency in the banking sector, allowing regulators, policymakers, researchers, analysts and other interested parties to access non-confidential information that can be used for policy formulation, research, and analysis. The disclosure of this information is intended to benefit the banking industry, regulatory bodies, and the broader public by providing valuable data for decision-making and oversight. The legislation ensures that the information released does not infringe on the privacy of individuals or the reputation of corporate entities, aligning with the human rights obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Key Provisions

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (confidentiality) determination No. 15 of 2015 (Determination No. 15) enables APRA to disclose certain information provided by banks to APRA under the reporting standards listed in the Appendix. This determination ensures that such information is non-confidential, which is critical for regulators, policymakers, industry, researchers, analysts, and other interested parties who rely on this data for informed decision-making and analysis (APRA Act, s 57). It applies to all banks that have submitted data under the specified reporting standards, which include International Exposures: Locational (Assets) Part 1, International Exposures: Locational (Liabilities) Part 1, International Exposures: Locational Part 2, International Exposures: Consolidated (Domestic Entity), and International Exposures: Consolidated (Foreign Entity). The obligations imposed by Determination No. 15 primarily concern the disclosure process. APRA is required to give relevant entities or bodies, or their representative association, a reasonable opportunity to make representations as to whether information of the kind contained in the document is confidential. APRA must then take these representations into account before determining that the information is non-confidential. This process ensures transparency and fairness, allowing stakeholders to voice their concerns about the potential impact of disclosing such information. Any breach of the obligations under Determination No. 15 does not necessarily result in criminal or civil penalties, as the determination itself does not constitute a legislative instrument that imposes such penalties. However, failure to comply with the disclosure process outlined in the APRA Act may lead to legal challenges or reputational harm for APRA. The primary consequence of non-compliance would be the inability to release the non-confidential information as intended, potentially affecting the stakeholders who rely on this data. The determination also ensures that the disclosure of information does not contravene human rights, particularly by assessing it against the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). APRA has determined that the disclosure of information under Determination No. 15 does not engage any of the applicable rights or freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. Therefore, it is compatible with human rights as it does not raise any human rights issues.

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