On 9 January 2025, the National Securities Commission issued General Resolution No. 1047/2025, establishing the regulatory framework applicable to the automatic public offering of securities under different modalities.
On 5 December 2024, the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore published an update regarding products found by foreign regulators in November 2024 to contain impermissible and potent ingredients that may cause harmful side effects.
The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) conducted a large-scale operation in collaboration with major e-commerce and social media platforms, removing over 3,300 listings of illegal health products. The operation highlights the HSA’s commitment to consumer safety, targeting substandard or counterfeit products that are potentially unsafe and pose health risks.
On 10 December 2024, the Treasury Laws Amendment (Responsible Buy Now Pay Later and Other Measures) Act 2024 (Cth) (“BNPL Act”) received royal assent. The BNPL Act contains 6 Schedules that respectively amend a range of statutes including relevantly the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth) which regulates the industry of BNPL products. Providers of BNPL products have six months before this new regulatory framework commences to apply for, or vary an existing Australian credit license as well as update their procedures, policies and contracts.
On 4 December 2024, ASIC released Consultation Paper 381: Updates to INFO 225 Digital Assets: Financial Products and Services (“CP 381”), offering substantial proposed updates to the existing Information Sheet 225: Crypto Assets (“INFO 225”). These proposed updates include providing additional guidance on digital assets, the inclusion of worked examples and transitional relief for businesses who are in the process of applying for one or more licenses from ASIC. ASIC seeks feedback on the updates proposed in CP 381, with plans to finalize INFO 225 by mid-2025.
On 6 December 2024, the Hong Kong government gazetted the Stablecoins Bill, which aims to establish a regulatory regime for issuers of fiat-referenced stablecoins in Hong Kong. This follows public consultations by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The Bill aims to introduce a licensing and regulatory framework for FRS issuers and those involved in offering FRS.
On 10 December 2024, the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Amendment Act 2024 (Cth) received royal assent. This legislation makes material amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Cth) and brings about significant reform to Australia’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) regime.
These amendments have sought to close key legislative gaps and better align Australia’s AML/CTF regime with the international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force.
The European Accessibility Act is a directive aimed at improving the accessibility of products and services for people with disabilities across the European Union. It establishes common accessibility requirements for a wide range of products and services provided to consumers to ensure that people with disabilities have better access to digital and physical environments, thereby promoting their inclusion and participation in society.
On 26 July 2024, in response to the UK Government’s Investment Research Review on the effectiveness of the investment research market, the FCA published its final rules and guidance to permit the bundling of payments for investment research and trade execution by investment firms. The final rules, which took effect on 1 August 2024, adapt the FCA’s policy to evolving markets and better align with the regulatory position in the EU and US. The FCA has now proposed to extend reintroduction of the bundled payment model to managers of pooled funds – i.e., AIFMs and UCITS ManCos.
On 26 November 2024, The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (SEHK) issued a new guidance letter (GL120-24) to inform the market of its expectations on investigations conducted by suspended issuers and the roles of the directors and the independent investigation committees (IIC). According to the latest monthly prolonged suspension status report published by the SEHK, as at 29 November 2024, there were 57 Main Board and eight GEM issuers which have been suspended for three months or more.