The Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry was established on 14 December 2017 by the former Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd) to enquire into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry.
I was asked by the Royal Commission to respond to the following questions:
- How can conflicts of interest influence advisers?
- What can the effects of the disclosure of conflicts of interest by advisers be on the
behaviour of advisers, including the quality of the advice provided? - What can the effects of the disclosure of conflicts of interest by advisers be on the
behaviour of recipients of advice in acting on or considering the advice? - What other policy responses (apart from disclosure) to conflicts of interest on the part of
advisers have you considered and what is the evidence as to the effectiveness of these
other policy responses?
I addressed these questions in this paper produced for the Royal Commission. It is referenced significantly in the Final Report that was submitted to the Governor-General on 1 February 2019, and tabled in the Australian Parliament on 4 February 2019.