APRA prioritises cyber attacks and super scrutiny in new plan
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The news: The Australian Prudential and Regulation Authority (APRA) has published its corporate plan which outlined key priority areas including cyber attacks and increased scrutiny of spending by superannuation funds.
The context: APRA said the plan will help it with its work in "preserving the safety and stability of banks, insurers, superannuation trustees and the broader financial system".
It named its strategic priorities as:
- Strengthening cyber resilience across APRA’s regulated industries in the face of escalating attacks, including the monitoring of AI adoption and geopolitical tensions;
- Updating APRA’s prudential standards for governance;
- Assessing compliance with its new operational risk management standard CPS 230;
- Publishing the results of its first system stress test, evaluating risks arising from interconnectedness between the banking and superannuation sectors;
- Intensifying scrutiny of superannuation fund expenditure and reviewing the investment governance and member outcomes of major platform providers; and
- Releasing the results of APRA’s Climate Vulnerability Assessment for the general insurance sector.
What they said: APRA chair John Lonsdale said the regulator's job of strengthening the financial system would lay the groundwork for economic growth.
"At a time of heightened global volatility, APRA will continue to focus on ensuring banks, insurers and superannuation trustees have the financial and operational resilience to withstand a sudden shock and continue delivering vital financial services to their customers," Lonsdale said.
"We recognise the importance of efficient, proportionate and right-sized regulation to support the competition, innovation and investment that underpin productivity and a strong economy.
"While APRA’s prudential framework has always been proportionate, over the coming few years we will step up our focus on identifying opportunities to better support competition and productivity without compromising on our safety and stability objectives."
The source: APRA Corporate Plan
