The ACCC has published its enforcement and compliance priorities for 2018.

The policy identifies competition issues in the financial services sector as a priority.

In a speech launching the policy chairman Rod Sims said:

“As the economy-wide competition regulator, the ACCC has always had responsibility for tackling anticompetitive conduct in the financial services sector. Our late 2016 actions against ANZ and Macquarie Bank illustrate this.
In the 2017/18 Budget, the government gave us additional resources to set up a dedicated Financial Services Unit.
In addition to examining anticompetitive conduct, the FSU will proactively identify competition issues in the sector and conduct market studies.
Importantly, the ACCC is due to release its interim report into residential mortgage pricing shortly. As directed by the Treasurer, a key focus will be on transparency, particularly how the major banks balance the interests of consumers and shareholders in making their interest rate decisions.
Our final report will be released after June 2018, following which we will transition to our market studies work, focussing on general competition issues. As was always envisaged, the PC’s draft report has identified many issues that we will consider further.”

The ACCC Chair also identified misuse of market power and unfair contract terms as priorities.

Specific issues to be given priority in addition to financial services will be:

• consumer issues in new car retailing;
• consumer issues in the provision of broadband services;
• systemic issues involving large or national traders avoiding or misrepresenting consumer guarantee rights;
• competition and consumer issues in the provision of energy as an essential service;
• competition and consumer issues concerning the use of digital platforms, algorithms and consumer data, with a focus on emerging markets and matters identified by the ACCC’s digital platforms inquiry;
• ensuring small business receives the protections of industry codes and the unfair contract terms law, with a focus on Franchising Code of Conduct issues involving large or national franchisors;
• ensuring better product safety outcomes for consumers in the online marketplace;
• issues arising from the Takata airbags recall;
• conduct that may contravene the new misuse of market power provisions and concerted practice provisions of the Act;
• competition and consumer issues in the agriculture sector, with a focus on the dairy inquiry, Horticultural Code of Conduct enforcement, and analysis of the viticulture industry;
• competition issues in the commercial construction sector.