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Corporate regulator the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) is set for two new leaders, after the auditor-general raised questions about tax advice and rental payments made for bosses. The regulator will also overhaul its internal governance practices, systems, and processes, after an external investigation raised concerns about the proper use and management of public resources, systems of risk oversight and management, and systems of internal control. ASIC chairman James Shipton stood aside from the role while an investigation was undertaken into relocation payments of almost $200,000 made for himself and deputy chair Daniel Crennan. While the investigation by former intelligence watchdog Vivienne Thom found Mr Shipton had not done the wrong thing, he has agreed with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg to step down from the role. He will be back in the office on Monday after the time stood aside, and will stay on until a replacement is found. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was notified of issues with the expenses by the Auditor-General after auditing the financial statements of the agency, but the payments, and the review were sensationally revealed in a committee hearing last year. READ MORE: The payment relating to Mr Shipton, who is paid more than $800,000 a year, stems from his relocation to Australia in 2018 to take up the role as chair from the United States, where he had been working at Harvard after a stint as an executive at investment bank Goldman Sachs. He has now paid the money back, as has former deputy chairman Daniel Crennan, who resigned last year. The government will release an abridged version of Dr Thom’s report. “That abridged version of the report makes it very clear that there were deficiencies into ASIC as to the way decisions were taken in respect to these matters and that the governance and audit processes and management processes and indeed the legal processes can all be improved and so there will be a need for changes at ASIC,” Mr Frydenberg said. For faster access to the latest Canberra news, download The Canberra Times app for iOS and Android.
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Corporate regulator the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC) is set for two new leaders, after the auditor-general raised questions about tax advice and rental payments made for bosses.
The regulator will also overhaul its internal governance practices, systems, and processes, after an external investigation raised concerns about the proper use and management of public resources, systems of risk oversight and management, and systems of internal control.
ASIC chairman James Shipton stood aside from the role while an investigation was undertaken into relocation payments of almost $200,000 made for himself and deputy chair Daniel Crennan.
While the investigation by former intelligence watchdog Vivienne Thom found Mr Shipton had not done the wrong thing, he has agreed with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg to step down from the role. He will be back in the office on Monday after the time stood aside, and will stay on until a replacement is found.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was notified of issues with the expenses by the Auditor-General after auditing the financial statements of the agency, but the payments, and the review were sensationally revealed in a committee hearing last year.
The payment relating to Mr Shipton, who is paid more than $800,000 a year, stems from his relocation to Australia in 2018 to take up the role as chair from the United States, where he had been working at Harvard after a stint as an executive at investment bank Goldman Sachs.
He has now paid the money back, as has former deputy chairman Daniel Crennan, who resigned last year.
The government will release an abridged version of Dr Thom’s report.
“That abridged version of the report makes it very clear that there were deficiencies into ASIC as to the way decisions were taken in respect to these matters and that the governance and audit processes and management processes and indeed the legal processes can all be improved and so there will be a need for changes at ASIC,” Mr Frydenberg said.
