"Ethics - the set of moral values and behaviours guiding society - play a key role in the growth and stability of the economy, and in finance in particular. Good ethics, through nurturing consistent and reliable behaviours, are necessary for building the trust that helps facilitate transactions, especially in an increasingly complex business world. In contrast, poor ethics erode trust in the financial system, leading to a breakdown of transactions - and worse, bank runs and financial instability."

(Source: International Monetary Fund)

The Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry was established on 14 December 2017 by the Govenor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd). 

The final report has now been released and can be accessed here. 

Note: you may need to authenticate twice to access and wait for the sections to load (Section 2 – Regional Snapshots in particular is slower to load due to the file size).

NewsBank consolidates current and archived information from thousands of newspaper titles. An example search below illustrates how you can use NewsBank to access information regarding banking royal commissions. You can then limit your search within the database by publication type, date, and region. 

Potential conflicts within the realm of financial advice and planning was brought to light during the recent Financial Services Royal Commission; the most common form being commissions/remuneration for advice. 

The Corporations Act 2001 sets out several documents that financial advisers are to follow in terms of conflict of interest:

• 947B
• 947C
• 942B
• 942C

The Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) has a Code of Professional Practice which combines professional membership, professional conduct, and professional accountability.