The financial services watchdog is looking to improve the way it regulates the businesses under its purview.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has launched a new service charter, setting out a range of standards and principles for its main operations.

Chairman Jeffrey Lucy says the charter prescribes exactly what Australian companies, and financial and professional services, can expect from the regulator. It explains their rights and responsibilities and also dictates how long standard requests and applications should take to process.

ASIC also aims to simplify its processes and publications, with several documents to be translated into smaller and more readable sets.

It has promised to report on its performance against several criteria on an annual basis.

Mr Lucy says the charter and forthcoming reform represent an important step towards the goal of becoming a strong, fair and progressive regulator.