Regulation of Securities Industry Intermediaries--Australian Proposals

Abstract

In its one hundred ninety-eight page A Review of the Licensing Provisions of the Securities Industry Act and Codes (Review) published in October 1985,1 the Australian National Companies and Securities Commission, upon reviewing the licensing provisions of the Securities Industry Act of 1980 Commonwealth and Codes, stated what many had long felt, that "the present licensing system is not working adequately to provide adequate investor protection."'2 The Review considers, instead, a move to the United States/Canadian model of supervised self-regulation by self-regulatory organizations (SROs) in combination with the maintenance of the existing method of regulation by the Commission.3 This article endeavors to address the Australian proposals and to compare them with the North American experience. In particular, the article will initially review the various theories of occupational licensure.4 Next, it will discuss the ramifications of self-regulation by