Borrow
Credit companies taken to court over failure to cooperate with AFCA
The corporate regulator has announced that it’s suing two credit providers for failing to take reasonable steps to cooperate with AFCA.
Credit companies taken to court over failure to cooperate with AFCA
The corporate regulator has announced that it’s suing two credit providers for failing to take reasonable steps to cooperate with AFCA.
ASIC has alleged that General Commercial group and Eden Capital (formally Southside Lending) repeatedly engaged in disruptive, aggressive and uncooperative behaviour towards the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), with the intent of disrupting AFCA’s complaints handling and investigation processes and undermining the effectiveness, efficiency and fundamental principles of the AFCA scheme.
Since 6 April 2019, reforms introduced as a result of the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Royal Commission mean that a failure to cooperate with AFCA is a civil penalty offence with significant penalties.
ASIC also alleged that General Commercial and Eden Capital’s conduct amounted to a breach of their obligations as credit licensees to act, efficiently, honestly and fairly.
According to ASIC deputy chair Sarah Court, compliance with AFCA determinations is a critical part of a licensee’s obligations. It ensures that consumers have access to independent resolutions that can be handled in a timely manner.
“ASIC expects credit licensees to cooperate with AFCA in resolving a complaint under the AFCA scheme and to comply with the conditions of their licence,” Ms Court said.
According to ASIC, the misconduct included:
- Failure to pay an AFCA determination to complainants in the amount of $11,492.71.
- Threatening AFCA complainants with legal proceedings unless they withdrew their AFCA complaint.
- Commencing proceedings against complainants because they lodged a complaint with AFCA.
- Making complaints about the conduct of AFCA staff members.
- Threatening to withdraw from the AFCA scheme or to not renew their AFCA membership.
- Threatening to bring proceedings against AFCA staff members who were investigating complaints.
- Commencing proceedings against an AFCA staff member (seeking $25,000 in damages).
- Repeated failures to identify, locate and provide to AFCA documents and information requested for the purposes of resolving the complaints.
RELATED ARTICLES
About the author
About the author
Banking
PayPal Open Debuts in Australia: A Unified Platform for Business Growth
Sydney, 14 October 2025 – In a significant move to bolster commerce capabilities for businesses across Australia, PayPal has officially launched its new merchant platform, PayPal OpenRead more
Banking
RBA holds interest rates steady at 3.6% amid strong labour market and inflation concerns
In a widely anticipated move, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced that it would maintain the cash rate at 3.6%. The decision was unanimous, reflecting a cautious approach as the central bank ...Read more
Banking
Hardship is the new conduct frontier: A bank’s playbook for turning ASIC scrutiny into ROI
ASIC has put financial hardship on its 2025 enforcement radar, shifting lender performance from a customer service problem to a board-level conduct risk. This case study examines how an Australian ...Read more
Banking
RBA flags price uplift as Home Guarantee expansion accelerates: what it means for banks, builders and the bottom line
Australia’s expanded Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS) has been brought forward to 1 October, compressing a multi‑year policy shift into weeks. The RBA expects the changes to lift borrowing capacity and add ...Read more
Banking
ASIC's crackdown on private credit sector gains support from industry veteran
In the wake of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's (ASIC) recent regulatory actions, Richard Woodhead, Founder and Managing Director of GPS Investment Fund, has voiced strong ...Read more
Banking
Why central banks are ditching Treasuries for gold and what it means for business leaders
Gold’s renaissance is no longer just an investor narrative; it’s a reserve‑management strategy. Multiple reports indicate central bank gold holdings now exceed US Treasuries by value for the first ...Read more
Banking
AMP Bank GO strengthens fraud protection with innovative security measures
AMP Bank GO has emerged as a formidable player in the fight against financial fraud, with its innovative security measures setting new standards in the digital banking sector. Since its launch in ...Read more
Banking
APRA’s hybrid exit is a A$43bn catalyst: who captures the flow—bank credit or private credit?
Australia’s phase-out of bank hybrids isn’t just a regulatory clean-up—it’s a forced portfolio reallocation the size of a mid-tier super fund. Read more
Banking
PayPal Open Debuts in Australia: A Unified Platform for Business Growth
Sydney, 14 October 2025 – In a significant move to bolster commerce capabilities for businesses across Australia, PayPal has officially launched its new merchant platform, PayPal OpenRead more
Banking
RBA holds interest rates steady at 3.6% amid strong labour market and inflation concerns
In a widely anticipated move, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) announced that it would maintain the cash rate at 3.6%. The decision was unanimous, reflecting a cautious approach as the central bank ...Read more
Banking
Hardship is the new conduct frontier: A bank’s playbook for turning ASIC scrutiny into ROI
ASIC has put financial hardship on its 2025 enforcement radar, shifting lender performance from a customer service problem to a board-level conduct risk. This case study examines how an Australian ...Read more
Banking
RBA flags price uplift as Home Guarantee expansion accelerates: what it means for banks, builders and the bottom line
Australia’s expanded Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS) has been brought forward to 1 October, compressing a multi‑year policy shift into weeks. The RBA expects the changes to lift borrowing capacity and add ...Read more
Banking
ASIC's crackdown on private credit sector gains support from industry veteran
In the wake of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's (ASIC) recent regulatory actions, Richard Woodhead, Founder and Managing Director of GPS Investment Fund, has voiced strong ...Read more
Banking
Why central banks are ditching Treasuries for gold and what it means for business leaders
Gold’s renaissance is no longer just an investor narrative; it’s a reserve‑management strategy. Multiple reports indicate central bank gold holdings now exceed US Treasuries by value for the first ...Read more
Banking
AMP Bank GO strengthens fraud protection with innovative security measures
AMP Bank GO has emerged as a formidable player in the fight against financial fraud, with its innovative security measures setting new standards in the digital banking sector. Since its launch in ...Read more
Banking
APRA’s hybrid exit is a A$43bn catalyst: who captures the flow—bank credit or private credit?
Australia’s phase-out of bank hybrids isn’t just a regulatory clean-up—it’s a forced portfolio reallocation the size of a mid-tier super fund. Read more
