Design and distribution obligations and product intervention power

As part of the Government’s response to the Financial System Inquiry (FSI), Improving Australia’s Financial System 2015, the Government accepted the FSI’s recommendations to introduce:

• design and distribution obligations for financial products to ensure that products are targeted at the right people (FSI recommendation 21); and
• a temporary product intervention power for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission when there is a risk of significant consumer detriment (FSI recommendation 22).

This paper seeks feedback on the implementation of these measures. In order to assist interested parties in providing feedback, the Paper outlines proposals to illustrate how the measures could operate in practice. This approach recognises that many of the elements of the measures are interrelated and so to provide feedback people need to be able to view the measures holistically.

The proposals outlined in this paper are intended to elicit specific and focused feedback, and should not be viewed as a statement of the Government’s final policy position.

The Government invites all interested parties to make a submission on the proposals outlined in this paper.