A sick joke as regulator

Michael West has once again done an excellent job in revealing just how lax Australia’s corporate regulatory regime is (“Bank penalties disguised as charitable donations”, December 1–7) . His forensic analysis shows how banks have not only been able to escape paying fines for financial offences by making taxdeductible charitable donations, but also to pick up awards for their “largesse” from the beneficiaries of these donations. In doing so he highlights the lack of transparency surrounding these transactions and the difficulty journalists and other interested parties face in investigating such practices. I’m sure the irony of having to pay a considerable sum to search the documents of Financial Literacy Australia and its reincarnation Ecstra was not lost on West. As part of the overhaul of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the need for which has been soundly demonstrated by the banking royal commission, might it not be a good idea to follow the lead of many other Western economies and remove the charges for searching all company documents on its register?

– Jennifer Kitchener, Bondi Beach, NSW