AFSA's Annual Summit was held on 13 November 2024. The Summit brought together over 140 leaders from across industry and government to discuss our collective stewardship and how we all have a role to play to build confidence in a strong credit system for the Australian community.
The Summit opened with a warm and insightful Welcome to Country led by Aunty Joan 'Ding' Bell, who set the tone for the day with a powerful message: to work together and 'learn by listening'.
Her words resonated throughout the day's sessions as attendees gathered to discuss the latest reforms, challenges and strategies shaping the financial and regulatory landscape.
We were delighted to welcome the Attorney-General, the Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP, to deliver this year's keynote address. The Attorney-General emphasised that reforms reflect the collective input of industry professionals and demonstrated how insights across the sector have shaped policy.
In the first session of the day, Sarah Court, Deputy Chair, Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), highlighted the importance of stewardship in promoting good consumer outcomes and supporting Australians' confidence in the credit system.
This was reiterated by Julian Roberts, Acting Chief Commissioner, Frontline Compliance, Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Lucinda McCann, General Counsel, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) and Tim Beresford, Chief Executive, AFSA, in the panel session that followed.
Philip Crawford, Chief Commissioner, NSW Independent Casino Commission, shared his experiences in overseeing cultural compliance within major corporations.
He described culture as 'what you and your staff do when no one's watching', and drew on a number of well-known case studies. Philip warned the sector must prioritise shifting internal cultures to avoid regulatory consequences.
Panellists Shabnam Amirbeaggi, President, Association of Independent Insolvency Practitioners (AIIP) and Managing Partner, Crouch Amirbeaggi, Rachel Burdett, President, Australian Restructuring Insolvency & Turnaround Association (ARITA) and Partner, Cor Cordis and Neville Matthew, National Manager, Education, Surveillance and Enforcement, AFSA, continued the discussion with Philip on the culture of compliance.
Following this, Fiona Guthrie, CEO of Way Forward, characterised vulnerability as an increased risk of harm, stressing the importance of empathy in understanding financial hardship.
Fiona's address mirrored Philip's call in the previous session to confront unethical practices, emphasising the need for companies to actively protect vulnerable clients.
The panel discussion, featuring Bettina Cooper, Financial Counselling and Strategy Lead, Mob Strong Debt Help, Stephanie Tonkin, CEO, Consumer Action Law Centre and Emma Greenwood, General Manager, Regulatory Operations Group, AFSA, focused on the importance of collaborating across our credit system to address vulnerability.
Session 4 showcased 2 case studies focused on customer-centric approaches. Lisa Keeling, General Manager, Telecommunications Modernisation Division, Services Australia, reflected on the agency's response to Robodebt and introduced their Customer 360 Strategy, which aligns program design with customer insights.
Kim Hughes, Business Bank General Manager, Digital and Transformation, Commonwealth Bank (CBA), discussed the Breakpoints program, a data-driven initiative aimed at improving customer experiences, such as the Business Cash Flow tool in the CommBank app developed in response to small business concerns over expenses.
The final session of the day, covering consumer protection in our ecosystem and small business, featured Alexi Boyd, Founder, Small Biz Matters, Adam Hopkins, Managing Director, Metrics Credit Partners and Marcel Savary, National Manager, Personal Property Securities and Regulatory Programs, AFSA.
The panel focused on promoting the benefits of the Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) to small business, utilising the register as an effective risk management tool, as well as AFSA's role in preventing misuse.
The 2024 AFSA Summit provided the industry with a unique opportunity to listen, learn and reflect on practices across the Australian securities and credit sectors.
From cultural integrity to prioritising customer welfare, the Summit underscored a shared commitment to enhancing the experiences of individuals and businesses navigating Australia's financial systems.
