Variation of List of Names and Categories of Registered Entities - Cash Converters (Cash Advance) Pty Ltd

Overview

The Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001 was enacted to establish a robust framework for the collection of data from financial sector entities, thereby enhancing the capacity of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) to monitor and regulate the financial sector effectively. The Act was introduced to address the need for comprehensive and up-to-date data collection from entities within the financial sector, ensuring that APRA could perform its regulatory functions efficiently. This legislation empowers APRA to maintain a register of entities and a list of names of registered entities, which is critical for its regulatory oversight. The policy objective of the Act is to facilitate the collection and maintenance of accurate and timely data from entities in the financial sector, thereby supporting APRA's mandate to safeguard the financial system's stability and integrity.

Scope and Application

The Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001 applies to entities that are required to be registered by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), which includes a range of financial sector entities such as banks, credit unions, and certain insurance companies. The Act mandates that APRA maintain a Register of Entities and a list of the names of these registered entities. The geographic reach of the Act is national, as it applies to entities operating across Australia, overseen by a federal authority. The Act includes provisions for APRA to vary the list of registered entities by adding or removing names as necessary, as evidenced by the recent gazetted variation adding Cash Converters (Cash Advance) Pty Ltd to the list. The Act does not specify exclusions or exemptions explicitly within the gazetted notice, but it is understood that entities not within the regulatory purview of APRA would not be subject to its registration requirements. The authority to vary the list of registered entities can be extended through subordinate instruments, enabling APRA to respond to changes in the financial sector landscape efficiently.

Key Provisions

The primary operative sections of this legislation concern the variation of the list of names and categories of registered entities as kept by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) under the Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001. Specifically, section 11(2) of the Act empowers a delegate of APRA to vary the list of registered entities by adding the names of corporations that have become registrable. In this case, Cash Converters (Cash Advance) Pty Ltd (ABN: 69 127 866 308) has become a registrable corporation under section 7 of the Act, and its name and particulars have been added to the register under paragraph 10(a) of the Act. As a result, the delegate of APRA has varied the list by adding the name of this corporation, making it a registered entity under subsection 5(3) of the Act. The obligations imposed by the Act on APRA and other relevant parties include maintaining a Register of Entities and a list of the names of registered entities. Under section 8, APRA is required to keep the register, while under section 11, APRA must maintain the list. The Act also mandates that APRA must add the names of registrable corporations to the register and the list, as specified in sections 10(a) and 11(2). The corporation itself must meet the criteria for registrability under section 7 of the Act, and once it does, it becomes a registered entity as per subsection 5(3). There are no explicit offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences mentioned in the legislation regarding the variation of the list of registered entities. However, failure to comply with the Act’s requirements could potentially lead to enforcement actions by APRA or other regulatory bodies. For instance, if a corporation fails to meet the criteria for registrability or if APRA fails to update the register and list as required, this could result in regulatory scrutiny or enforcement actions under other provisions of the Financial Sector (Collection of Data) Act 2001 or related legislation. The specific penalties or consequences would depend on the nature and extent of the non-compliance and the regulatory body's discretion in enforcing the law.