Treasurer Josh Frydenberg (source: Twitter)
The Australian Securities and Investment Commission has had its budget reduced by over seven per cent and will be asked to shed a corresponding ten per cent of its staff as a raft of changes to its job suite begin to shift the regulator’s purview.
While the money flowed as part of a budget aimed at securing Australia’s recovery, ASIC’s budget will drop from $772 million to $717 million in 2021-22, while its staff will drop from 2,096 to 1,878.
Ostensibly, the cutbacks are a natural follow-on from the government’s 2020 Budget Digital Business Plan, which will see ASIC’s business registration function transferred to the new Australian Business Registry Services (ABRS) under the Australian Tax Office.
Business Council of Australia
New Business Council analysis shows that Australia could be $210 billion better off over the next 20 years if we speed up our shift to a digital economy.
The analysis, completed by EY for the BCA’s digital economy and telecommunications working group, finds with the right approach Australia can fulfil its ambition to be a digital leader by 2030.
“People want easier, more convenient ways of doing business so becoming a leading digital economy is win-win. It makes everyday life easier for consumers and it creates new jobs,” Business Council President Tim Reed said.
“The slow drift away from cash and paper before COVID-19 became a stampede during the pandemic, now we’ve got to build on the momentum to make lives easier and position ourselves for the future.”
Australia is home to 733 active fintech companies, up from 629 in September 2019, reveals KPMG’s Fintech Landscape 2020 map. This represents an increase of 104 companies that joined the sector between September 2019 and December 2020.
The infographic, released on December 21, 2020, provides a snapshot of the Australian fintech ecosystem, revealing several major trends that have emerged over the past year.
In particular, the blockchain and cryptocurrency segment saw the strongest growth with 49 new companies being established. It’s followed by lending with the addition to 26 companies (some reclassified from the payments category since KPMG’s Fintech Landscape 2019 edition), and insurtech with 24 new companies established.
In 2020, payment maintained its dominance in the Australian fintech industry with 151 companies, up from 143 in 2019. Capital markets saw the addition to ten companies, bringing the total to 53, and neobanking, while remaining small, added five new comp
Thank you very much, Laura, and to everybody who is here today.
I, of course, begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal people, their elders past, present and the future.
Can I also acknowledge any veterans who are with us today, serving men and women of our Australian Defence Force and say to them thank you for your service.
Can I also acknowledge today the beautiful Abdallah and Sakr families on this first national i4Give Day, as we remember their four beautiful angels – Antony, Angelique, Sienna and Veronique – who were taken from us this day a year ago.
I also welcome the very many of my colleagues who are here today. Of course, led by the Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. It is great to have you all here today and I acknowledge you all and the great job you have been doing and I know you will do over the course of this year.