½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþ

media release (16-076MR)

½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþreleases consolidated instruments and guidance on fundraising

Published

Following public consultation, ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþhas updated its fundraising relief and guidance, to continue the important role these regulatory documents serve in facilitating efficient public fundraising in Australia. ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþhas remade fundraising class orders that were due to expire (‘sunset’), updated and consolidated its fundraising regulatory guidance, and issued two new legislative instruments aimed at helping reduce business costs.

½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþreviewed 31 sunsetting class orders relating to Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act, reissuing the relief in 26 of those class orders which were operating efficiently and effectively, and repealing five class orders that were no longer required.

To assist users of this relief, the 26 class orders have been consolidated by subject matter into 13 new legislative instruments, which have been drafted using ASIC’s current style and format while preserving their effect.

To help reduce business costs ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþhas issued two new legislative instruments which will promote commercial certainty and reduce the need for issuers to seek individual relief. These instruments:

  • facilitate issuers extending the time limits within which the minimum subscription and/or quotation conditions applying to an offer of securities must be satisfied, and clarify how these time periods are calculated; and
  • provide relief for prudentially-regulated issuers undertaking certain offers of regulatory capital securities to allow the use of a transaction-specific prospectus.

½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþhas also—in the interests of promoting clarity, certainty and accessibility—updated its regulatory guidance on the procedure for offering securities for issue or sale under a disclosure document lodged in accordance with Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act including:

  • consolidating and updating seven existing regulatory guides into one new regulatory guide: Regulatory Guide 254 Offering securities under a disclosure document (RG 254);
  • updating ASIC’s guidance on minimum subscription and quotation conditions and clarifying how we administer the exposure period; and
  • minor updates to a further five related regulatory guides.

½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþtoday also released Report 473 Response to submissions on CP 239 Disclosure documents: Update to ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþinstruments and Guidance (REP 473).

REP 473 highlights the key issues which arose from the submissions ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþreceived in response to Consultation Paper 239 Disclosure documents: Update to ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþinstruments and guidance (CP 239)

Background

In September 2015, ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþreleased CP 239, in which we consulted on proposals to update and reorganise a range of our guidance on Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act, and remake a number of legislative instruments to which those guides relate. Submissions closed on 27 November 2015. (refer: 15-260MR)

½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþreceived four submissions in response to CP 239. Respondents were generally supportive of our proposal to update and consolidate our guidance. The matters on which issues were raised, or more detailed comments provided, differed among respondents. A summary of those issues and comments, and our responses, is provided in REP 473.

We have prepared a table which cross-references parts of our previous guidance that have been consolidated into RG 254 and identifies which legislative instruments supersede particular class orders.

View the table of consolidation of fundraising instruments and guidance

Download

Updated guidance

New and remade legislative instruments

  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Minimum Subscription and Quotation Conditions) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Regulatory Capital Securities) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Consents to Statements) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Disregarding Technical Relief) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Exposure Period) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Debenture Prospectuses) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Offer Information Statements) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Options: Bonus Issues) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Substituted Supplementary Disclosure Documents) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Market Research and Roadshows) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Sale Offers That Do Not Need Disclosure) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Sale Offers By Controllers) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Sale Offers: Securities Issued on Conversion of Convertible Notes) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Offers of Convertibles) Instrument
  • ½ñÈÕÈÈÃÅʼþCorporations (Non-Traditional Rights Issues) Instrument