ASIC drafts RG 267 rewrite as telcos join AFCA scam complaints scheme
ASIC has put out draft Regulatory Guide 267, its first substantive revision of how it oversees AFCA, before telcos and digital platforms come into the scheme on 31 March 2027. Submissions close at 5pm AEDT on 24 November.
ASIC on Tuesday proposed its first substantive revision of the guidance it uses to oversee the Australian Financial Complaints Authority, releasing draft Regulatory Guide 267. The changes are meant to equip the guidance for scam disputes that involve banks, telcos and digital platforms. Telcos and digital platforms join the scheme, which was first built for financial firms, from 31 March 2027.
The draft spells out which regulators receive the issues AFCA spots in scam cases. For banks, reports go to ASIC and the ACCC, the lead regulator of the Scams Prevention Framework. Telco reports go to the ACMA and the ACCC, and digital platform reports go only to the ACCC. The draft says telco and digital platform matters should not be sent to ASIC.
ASIC said it will talk to the ACCC and relevant sector regulators before it uses any powers that might touch AFCA's scam jurisdiction. A new scam example is added to the list of serious breaches AFCA must report, namely a regulated firm that gives consumers no workable way to report suspected scams. AFCA is expected to report these within 15 days, although the draft lets ASIC and AFCA agree a different period. Conduct pointing to continuing harm should be reported as soon as possible.
For licensees, the most notable edit is a removal. ASIC has dropped its detailed chapter on AFCA membership obligations and intends to cover them, including cooperation with AFCA, on its dispute resolution webpage. Material now dealt with by ASIC-approved AFCA scheme rules has also gone, as has legacy content such as compensation caps from the predecessor schemes. The draft also constrains ASIC: its general power of direction cannot be used to tell AFCA how to handle particular complaints, and neither complainants nor AFCA members can ask for a direction.
AFCA's annual review, published on 22 October, counted nearly 120,000 complaints in 2025–26, a record, with scams the top issue in banking and finance at 6,580 cases.
AFCA has finished consulting on its own scam rules, and ASIC said it may adjust RG 267 again when those are final. Feedback is due by 5pm AEDT on 24 November, and ASIC aims to issue the final guidance and updated webpages before 31 March 2027.