1. Handbook
  2. Subjects
  3. Regulation of Securities Markets

Regulation of Securities Markets (LAWS70328)

Graduate coursework level 7Points: 12.5Not available in 2024

You’re viewing the 2024 Handbook:
Or view archived Handbooks

Overview

FeesLook up fees

The fallout from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) has put significant pressure on securities markets in Australia, which form part of the broader market for financial products and services. In the past few years, there have been significant developments in relation to the operation of the market for securities, including government approval for a new market operator (Chi-X). There has also been a regulatory response to the collapse of high-profile financial service providers, such as Storm Financial and Opes Prime. This subject will deal with these developments as well as recent case law relating to the responsibilities of listed entities, especially under the continuous disclosure regime and with other examples of market misconduct.

Principal topics include:

  • The policy basis for regulation of securities markets and participants
  • The evolution of Chapter 7 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) as it applies to securities transactions
  • The key concepts of securities, financial products and financial services
  • What is a financial market?
  • Licensing of financial markets and financial service providers
  • The role of the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in regulating market participants
  • The future of financial advice reforms
  • The role of the ASX in regulating listed entities
  • Continuous Disclosure – law and practice
  • The relationship between the ASX and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
  • Enforcement of ASX listing rules
  • Regulation of financial service providers
  • Prohibited market conduct
  • Insider trading.

Intended learning outcomes

A student who has successfully completed this subject will:



  • Have an advanced and integrated understanding of the legal principles of regulation of securities, including recent developments in this field of law and practice
  • Be able to critically examine, analyse, interpret and assess the effectiveness of these legal rules
  • Be an engaged participant in debate regarding emerging and contemporary issues in the field, such as dark pools, high frequency trading, global markets and competition between markets, market manipulation and problems of financial advice giving
  • Have a sophisticated appreciation of the factors and processes driving the debate about parliamentary reform of the legal framework
  • Have an advanced understanding of situations in which issues of conflict and transparency may arise in relation to security transactions
  • Have a detailed understanding of the importance of disclosure as a regulatory tool
  • Have a detailed understanding of prohibited practices such as insider trading, short selling and market manipulation and why they are prohibited
  • Have the cognitive and technical skills to generate critical and creative ideas relating securities markets regulation, and to critically evaluate existing regulatory approaches in a changing global environment
  • Have the cognitive and technical skills to independently examine, research and analyse existing and emerging legal issues relating to regulation of securities markets
  • Have the communication skills to clearly articulate and convey complex information regarding regulation of securities markets to relevant specialist and non-specialist audiences
  • Be able demonstrate autonomy, expert judgment and responsibility as a practitioner and learner in the field of regulation of securities markets.

Last updated: 30 July 2024