The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) proposed raising its direct scam-loss cap to A$1.263 million (about $909,000) today (Monday). The four-week consultation covers complaints spanning banks, telecommunications providers and digital platforms.
The draft would let AFCA bring several regulated entities into one complaint and divide liability between them. It would also double the current A$631,500 ceiling for direct financial loss.
Financial firms that are also regulated under the Scams Prevention Framework (SPF), including banks, would face the new Scam Rules for covered conduct from March 31, 2027.
Other financial-services disputes would remain under the renamed Financial Firm Rules. Under the existing regime, AFCA received more than 100,000 complaints in 2023.
One Scam Can Pull In Several Companies
AFCA expects many SPF complaints to involve a platform carrying an advertisement, a telecommunications provider carrying a call or message and one or more banks moving the money. Only 1.3% of AFCA complaints involved an additional joined firm in fiscal 2026, according to the consultation paper.
The proposed rules allow AFCA to add or remove a regulated entity at any point. AFCA could also request documents from an entity that is not a party when its records may help resolve the case.
That structure would put several steps in an investment-scam funnel before one dispute body.
FinanceMagnates.com recently reported that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC
ASIC
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the
Read this Term) removed more than 19,400 online scams in fiscal 2026. The total included fake investment platforms, phishing links and cryptocurrency scams.
AFCA could resolve complaints from the same scam on a common basis. It may also draw an adverse inference when a party fails to supply important information without a reasonable excuse.
The authority proposes an A$10,000 limit on the amount it can require a regulated entity to contribute toward expert advice in one complaint, unless special circumstances apply. The current Financial Firm Rules cap is A$5,000.
Direct-Loss Compensation Would Double
The A$1.263 million proposal would align the maximum direct-loss award with AFCA's existing monetary jurisdiction. A complaint above that amount would generally fall outside the scheme, and a consumer could not abandon part of the loss merely to bring the case below the threshold.
The ceiling applies once per scam, regardless of how many companies are involved. AFCA could apportion the award among regulated entities after considering the SPF Rules.
Indirect financial loss would carry a separate A$6,300 cap for each regulated entity. AFCA proposes doubling the non-financial loss limit to A$12,600, while legal, professional and travel costs would remain capped at A$5,000.
Those figures will be indexed on January 1, 2027, so the limits in force at the March start are expected to be higher than the consultation amounts.
AFCA's data show 42 scam complaints sought more than the current A$631,500 cap in fiscal 2026. Non-financial compensation was paid in about 14% to 20% of scam complaints from fiscal 2024 through fiscal 2026, totaling between A$3.4 million and A$5.7 million a year.
The figures sit against A$2.18 billion in combined reported Australian scam losses during 2025, up 7.8% from 2024. Investment scams accounted for A$837.7 million, and an FM Intelligence report examined ASIC's separate register of legitimate licensee websites.
The New Jurisdiction Is Prospective
The Scam Rules would cover activity or a regulated entity's conduct only when it occurred on or after the later of March 31, 2027 and the date its sector designation took effect.
AFCA illustrates the cutoff with a hypothetical investment scam. A platform advertisement in January 2027 and a scam call in February would fall outside the new rules, but an April bank transfer could fall within them.
The distinction matters because banks may remain answerable under the Financial Firm Rules for some older or non-SPF complaints. A digital platform that joined AFCA solely because of the SPF would not have that second route.
The single forum is intended to address the type of divided responsibility already appearing in enforcement. ASIC is seeking an A$35 million penalty from HSBC Australia over alleged failures in scam controls and complaint handling, subject to court approval.
Consultation Closes on September 28
AFCA opened the consultation on August 31 and scheduled a stakeholder webinar for September 3. Written submissions are due by September 28 through the consultation page.
Designated banks, telecommunications providers and digital platforms must be AFCA members from September 1, according to the authority. Many banks already belong to the scheme through their financial-services obligations
Obligations
In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you
In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you
Read this Term.
Consumers would generally need to use a company's internal dispute process first. A complaint must then reach AFCA by the earlier of six years from awareness of the loss or harm and two years from the entity's internal response, unless special circumstances apply.
AFCA plans to evaluate submissions in November, secure board and ASIC approval by late December and publish the final rules and operational guidance in early 2027.
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) proposed raising its direct scam-loss cap to A$1.263 million (about $909,000) today (Monday). The four-week consultation covers complaints spanning banks, telecommunications providers and digital platforms.
The draft would let AFCA bring several regulated entities into one complaint and divide liability between them. It would also double the current A$631,500 ceiling for direct financial loss.
Financial firms that are also regulated under the Scams Prevention Framework (SPF), including banks, would face the new Scam Rules for covered conduct from March 31, 2027.
Other financial-services disputes would remain under the renamed Financial Firm Rules. Under the existing regime, AFCA received more than 100,000 complaints in 2023.
One Scam Can Pull In Several Companies
AFCA expects many SPF complaints to involve a platform carrying an advertisement, a telecommunications provider carrying a call or message and one or more banks moving the money. Only 1.3% of AFCA complaints involved an additional joined firm in fiscal 2026, according to the consultation paper.
The proposed rules allow AFCA to add or remove a regulated entity at any point. AFCA could also request documents from an entity that is not a party when its records may help resolve the case.
That structure would put several steps in an investment-scam funnel before one dispute body.
FinanceMagnates.com recently reported that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC
ASIC
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is the prime regulator in Australia for corporate, markets, financial services, and consumer credit. It is empowered under the financial service laws to facilitate, regulate, and enforce Australian financial laws. The Australian Commission was set up and is administered under the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Act of 2001. ASIC was initially the Australian Securities Commission based on the 1989 ASC Act. Initially, the
Read this Term) removed more than 19,400 online scams in fiscal 2026. The total included fake investment platforms, phishing links and cryptocurrency scams.
AFCA could resolve complaints from the same scam on a common basis. It may also draw an adverse inference when a party fails to supply important information without a reasonable excuse.
The authority proposes an A$10,000 limit on the amount it can require a regulated entity to contribute toward expert advice in one complaint, unless special circumstances apply. The current Financial Firm Rules cap is A$5,000.
Direct-Loss Compensation Would Double
The A$1.263 million proposal would align the maximum direct-loss award with AFCA's existing monetary jurisdiction. A complaint above that amount would generally fall outside the scheme, and a consumer could not abandon part of the loss merely to bring the case below the threshold.
The ceiling applies once per scam, regardless of how many companies are involved. AFCA could apportion the award among regulated entities after considering the SPF Rules.
Indirect financial loss would carry a separate A$6,300 cap for each regulated entity. AFCA proposes doubling the non-financial loss limit to A$12,600, while legal, professional and travel costs would remain capped at A$5,000.
Those figures will be indexed on January 1, 2027, so the limits in force at the March start are expected to be higher than the consultation amounts.
AFCA's data show 42 scam complaints sought more than the current A$631,500 cap in fiscal 2026. Non-financial compensation was paid in about 14% to 20% of scam complaints from fiscal 2024 through fiscal 2026, totaling between A$3.4 million and A$5.7 million a year.
The figures sit against A$2.18 billion in combined reported Australian scam losses during 2025, up 7.8% from 2024. Investment scams accounted for A$837.7 million, and an FM Intelligence report examined ASIC's separate register of legitimate licensee websites.
The New Jurisdiction Is Prospective
The Scam Rules would cover activity or a regulated entity's conduct only when it occurred on or after the later of March 31, 2027 and the date its sector designation took effect.
AFCA illustrates the cutoff with a hypothetical investment scam. A platform advertisement in January 2027 and a scam call in February would fall outside the new rules, but an April bank transfer could fall within them.
The distinction matters because banks may remain answerable under the Financial Firm Rules for some older or non-SPF complaints. A digital platform that joined AFCA solely because of the SPF would not have that second route.
The single forum is intended to address the type of divided responsibility already appearing in enforcement. ASIC is seeking an A$35 million penalty from HSBC Australia over alleged failures in scam controls and complaint handling, subject to court approval.
Consultation Closes on September 28
AFCA opened the consultation on August 31 and scheduled a stakeholder webinar for September 3. Written submissions are due by September 28 through the consultation page.
Designated banks, telecommunications providers and digital platforms must be AFCA members from September 1, according to the authority. Many banks already belong to the scheme through their financial-services obligations
Obligations
In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you
In finance, an obligation is a financial responsibility where the terms of a contract must be met. Should an obligation between parties fail then the party who is at default may face legal action. In this scenario, the guilty party will not only have to agree to pay the set amount to fulfill the contractual arrangement but may also be responsible for covering all legal proceedings cost. Routine payments or outstanding debt of any kind are considered financial obligations, so if someone owes you
Read this Term.
Consumers would generally need to use a company's internal dispute process first. A complaint must then reach AFCA by the earlier of six years from awareness of the loss or harm and two years from the entity's internal response, unless special circumstances apply.
AFCA plans to evaluate submissions in November, secure board and ASIC approval by late December and publish the final rules and operational guidance in early 2027.
