The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has released an overview of surveillance work it undertook in the last financial year, as part of its bid to improve transparency and increase public understanding of its work.

It shows how often ASIC scrutinises insurers, financial advisers, investment managers, insolvency practitioners, corporations and other groups through on-site visits and desk-based reviews that last more than two days.

Each of the 135 insurers covered by ASIC is subject to high-intensity surveillance every seven years on average, based on the number of reviews conducted in the 2011/12 financial year.

Of the 3343 financial services licensees authorised to give personal advice, the top 20 – representing 26% of advisers – are reviewed every 1.7 years on average.

In practice, a risk-based approach to surveillance means some will be covered several times in that period and others not at all, the regulator says.

Sixty-four ASIC staff members work in the division reviewing insurers, deposit-takers and credit providers.

ASIC Chairman Greg Medcraft says the commission identifies “significant and strategically important gatekeepers within the financial system to analyse. Holding gatekeepers to account is an important part of… ensuring investors and financial consumers are confident and informed, and markets are fair and efficient.”

In the six months to June 30 ASIC achieved 303 enforcement outcomes or formal actions to secure compliance that it made public. Of these, 209 ended in criminal court action, 59 in administrative remedies, 24 in enforceable undertakings or negotiated outcomes, 10 in civil court action and one in a public warning notice.

ASIC will release a summary of its surveillance work in its annual report.

The regulator has also updated its service charter to reflect its new consumer credit responsibilities and clearer performance targets.

The charter explains how it responds to requests such as licence applications and company registration and to reports of alleged misconduct.

“When someone wants to register a company, the service charter states we should be able to complete the request within one day in 90% or more of cases,” Mr Medcraft said. “Last year we exceeded this target.”

ASIC will publish service charter performance figures for 2011/12 with the annual report later this year.