Fresh from winning an important victory over the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), Axa Asia Pacific Holdings has called for a review of the regulator.

Last week the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) overturned an APRA decision to disqualify Group CEO-in-waiting Andy Penn and six other directors of Axa’s Staff Superannuation Plan.

Axa Chairman Rick Allert says the board always expected the matter would be resolved in favour of the trustee directors. The AAT decision recognised the trustees’ “diligence in dealing in an appropriate way with very complex issues”.

He says Axa fully supports a strong regulatory regime and will continue to work co-operatively with APRA.

“However, we have serious concerns with the process undertaken by APRA in this matter, such that we believe that the legislation governing APRA’s powers, and its process, needs to be reviewed.”

APRA says it will not appeal against the decision.

The AAT found the actions of the trustees did not warrant disqualification, but it did find they withheld information from a class of fund members and did so deliberately so that they could not select against the plan.

The AAT did note this but it also said the trustees’ conduct was in the interests of the fund members as a whole.

Shortly before the AAT decision was made public Axa promoted one of those affected by the action, Australia and NZ CEO Andy Penn, to Group CEO.

He will replace Les Owen, who will step down on September 30 and return to the UK after more than six years in the role.