The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) says businesses’ compliance with enforceable undertakings will be made public from next month.

It says the move, announced with a string of other updates to its policy on enforceable undertakings, will enhance transparency.

“This may include interim reporting about compliance, as well as reporting on final outcomes under an enforceable undertaking,” ASIC said. 

Summaries will be available on its website.

The regulator says public reporting “improves ASIC’s accountability for the regulatory outcomes we seek to achieve by accepting an enforceable undertaking”. 

ASIC will appoint independent experts when a business has a poor track record with compliance or neutral, third-party guidance is needed in complex compensation or remediation schemes.

Independent experts must demonstrate to ASIC their impartiality and ability to manage the assignments. “This will ensure the expert is capable of exercising objective and impartial judgement during an engagement.”

Independent experts are also required to show they can handle conflicts of interest that may arise during an enforceable engagement assignment.

ASIC will terminate experts’ appointments if their independence is impaired.

Enforceable undertaking promisors will bear the costs of hiring the experts.