As a leading independent law firm in Australia, Hindsight Legal Advisers specialise in providing comprehensive legal services to help businesses effectively navigate the complexities of the Design and Distribution Obligations (DDO).
With our deep understanding of the DDO regulations and extensive experience in the financial services industry, we are uniquely positioned to help your business navigate these complex obligations. We are committed to providing practical, tailored solutions that help you meet your obligations under the DDO regime while also supporting your business goals.
Get in touch with us today!
Understanding the DDO
The DDO regime, which commenced on 5 October 2021 under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth), is a set of regulatory requirements that aims to ensure financial products are suitable for consumers within their target market. These obligations require:
- issuers to design products that are likely to be consistent with the likely objectives, financial situation, and needs of the target market; and
- distributors to take ‘reasonable steps’ to distribute financial products to the target market. The key obligations that apply under the DDO include requirements to:
- determine whether you’re an issuer and/or distributor of a financial product regulated under the DDO regime;
- develop a written DDO governance framework or policy that embeds DDO compliance into your organisation’s systems and processes;
- create a target market determination (TMD) for each financial product;
- take reasonable steps to direct distribution of the relevant product to the target market;
- review and monitor TMDs to ensure they remain appropriate;
- supervise distribution; and
- notify ASIC of significant dealings in a product outside the target market.
How we can help
We offer a range of comprehensive DDO services tailored to your business needs:
Our expert legal team will advise you on your legal obligations and help you develop and implement a DDO compliance strategy that aligns with your business objectives and regulatory requirements.
We can assist with drafting or reviewing an array of DDO related documentation, including TMDs, Governance Frameworks and Policies, compliance checklists, distribution and delegation agreements and advertising material.
We provide comprehensive DDO training education to ensure your team understands their obligations and how to comply with them.
We help you respond to any ASIC requests and correspondence that relate to your DDO obligations.
We offer ongoing support to help you navigate any changes in DDO regulations and ensure your compliance strategy remains effective.
We are here to help!
Experience
Our lawyers have assisted numerous banks and non-bank lenders comply with their obligations under the DDO regime, including by:
Preparing and reviewing TMDs for both existing and new products.
Developing DDO Governance Frameworks and Policies and compliance checklists that are tailored to the unique nature of each business.
Providing DDO training and education programs to all levels of staff across the business.
Providing advice on whether certain products and distributors fall within the ambit of the DDO
Advising on and assisting with drafting appropriate responses to ASIC notices and correspondence.
Reviewing and amending distribution and delegation agreements to ensure product issuers are provided with appropriate protections in relation to the activities of distributors.
Get in touch
With ASIC shifting its regulatory focus to compliance with the DDO and implementing a number of targeted surveillances across sectors including BNPL (buy now, pay later), crypto products, credit cards, superannuation and managed investments, now is the time to contact our DDO legal experts to see how we can help your business thrive in a regulated environment.