In this edition, we examine the Australian Institute of Company Directors' (AICD) refreshed guidance on artificial intelligence (AI) governance, the new reforms to strengthen the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) business registers and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) first class exemption. In Legal, we consider the continuous disclosure findings of the Supreme Court of New South Wales against Regional Express Holdings Limited (Rex).
In Over the Horizon, we consider ASIC's push to keep Australia's capital markets competitive and what the convergence of AI, tokenisation and digital money means for board oversight.
Governance
AICD refreshes its AI governance guidance as boards embed the technology.
On 29 June 2026, the AICD released the second version of A Director's Guide to AI Governance, produced with the Human Technology Institute at the University of Technology Sydney. The update responds to the embedding of AI across Australian organisations and the emergence of agentic AI and reflects maturing governance practice since the first edition in 2024. The updated guide aims to help boards navigate AI confidently, promote innovation and strengthen oversight of AI’s impact on strategy, governance practices and risk. The AICD is hosting a complimentary webinar on 30 July 2026 to further discuss the resource. As discussed in last week's edition of Boardroom Brief, AI-enabled cyber and geopolitical risks are converging into a single, fast-moving board-level concern and existing directors' duties already apply to how organisations deploy AI. Directors should use the updated guidance to consider where AI is already used across the business, test whether current risk, control and reporting frameworks remain fit for purpose, and confirm that accountability for AI oversight is clearly allocated at board and management level.
Regulatory
The Australian Government has passed legislation that will materially enhance Australia’s corporate transparency framework.
On 29 June 2026, the Commonwealth Register (Repeal) Rules 2026 (Cth) (the Rules) became effective. The purpose of the Rules is to repeal the previous rules which prescribed additional functions for the Registrar to carry out various preparatory activities necessary for the transfer of registry functions from ASIC. The most significant change for non-executive directors is that, from 1 July 2027, Director Identification Numbers (DIN) will be linked directly to the ASIC Companies Register, making it considerably easier for regulators, counterparties and the public to trace individual directors acting across multiple entities. The reforms also grant ASIC greater powers to improve the protection of personal information held on registers. Directors should note that ASIC continues to actively enforce compliance with DIN policies and the practical consequences of non-compliance are likely to increase.
ACCC issues first class exemption to address global supply chain disruptions.
On 30 June 2026, the ACCC issued a short‑term class exemption to facilitate coordinated industry responses to global supply chain disruptions, following the grant of new “exceptional circumstances” powers earlier in the year. The new supply‑chain class exemption provides a temporary “safe harbour” from Part IV of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) for competing businesses to coordinate practical responses where this is directed at mitigating harm to Australian consumers or the Australian economy from the declared disruption. Examples may include coordination on logistics, distribution or maintaining supply of critical goods and services. The regime incorporates safeguards. Decisions under the streamlined process are not subject to merits review in the Australian Competition Tribunal, which increases certainty for businesses but also means refusals cannot be challenged on the merits. For boards, the exemption materially lowers the time and process burden of seeking competition law protection during acute supply‑chain shocks, but it does not remove the need for discipline. Directors in supply‑chain dependent sectors should work with in‑house and external competition counsel to identify where crisis‑related collaboration might be appropriate. They should also confirm whether their planned conduct falls within the ACCC’s class exemption or requires a separate fast‑track authorisation.
Legal
Supreme Court finds Rex breached continuous disclosure obligations but clears three non-executive directors of duty of care failures.
On 30 June 2026, the Supreme Court of New South Wales found that Rex breached its continuous disclosure obligations over a 2023 profit forecast. On 28 February 2023, Rex informed the market that it was "optimistic" about achieving positive operating profits for the full FY23, however, the Court found that Rex did not have reasonable grounds for the statement. Rex later disclosed a $35 million group operating loss and entered voluntary administration on 30 July 2024. The former executive chair, Mr Lim Kim Hai, admitted to the alleged contraventions against him, including breaching his directors’ duties and involvement in the continuous disclosure contraventions. The matter will return to Court for a hearing on the relief against Mr Lim. ASIC Chair, Ms Sarah Court, said, "Continuous disclosure is a core obligation for listed entities and underpins Australia's corporate governance framework." ASIC was unsuccessful in its case against the three former non-executive directors for alleged breaches of their directors’ duties. For non-executive directors, the decision reinforces that boards are entitled to rely on management to escalate material issues, but executives who control the flow of information to the board will be held personally accountable when they fail to do so.
Over the Horizon
ASIC presses to keep Australia's capital markets competitive.
On 30 June 2026, ASIC released Report 835, Innovation in Financial Markets and Financial Market Infrastructure, prepared by the Digital Finance Cooperative Research Centre. ASIC also convened a roundtable of market and financial services leaders, warning that Australia must move quickly or risk being left behind as other jurisdictions adopt financial-market innovation at speed. The report points to increasing automation, compressed settlement cycles, tokenised assets, distributed ledger technology and agentic, 'machine speed' AI trading. The Reserve Bank of Australia has commenced public consultation under its Review of Payments System Regulation on the future of payments and digital money, and the AICD has refreshed its AI governance guidance. Together, these developments signal growing regulatory expectations for boards. They should understand who is accountable for technology oversight, ensure risk, disclosure and resilience frameworks keep pace with technological change, and stress test assumptions about costs, hedging and continuous disclosure against easing energy prices and renewed disruption.