Financial services utility, APIR Systems, has today launched new functionality to provide clients with the ability to store Target Market Determinations (TMDs), ahead of the impending Design and Distribution Obligations (DDO) legislation.

The DDO legislation, which is being overseen by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), is scheduled to come into effect from 5 October 2021, and will impact issuers and distributors of financial products.

APIR chief executive, Chris Donohoe, said a recent TMD pilot program proved to be a critical precursor to the official launch of the service, and confirms that APIR’s solution is consistent with the industry’s expectations.

“Following the success of the pilot program, our focus now is on a broader market rollout, particularly as the industry has agreed to data standards and the managed fund TMD template.

“APIR is in the fortunate position of being able to leverage off our existing industry connectivity to deliver a simple and scalable solution. We’re one of few service providers in the market with existing infrastructure and capability to accommodate the new TMD obligations,” he said.

Some of the largest financial institutions in Australia took part in the pilot throughout May, which was aimed at testing the strength and appropriateness of the new TMD functionality.

“The program, including all the data and outworking’s analysed, was successful. It’s clear that APIR’s infrastructure and data capabilities are able to host a centralised repository.

“With APIR, the industry will be able to access a single centralised service where TMD information can be uploaded seamlessly and efficiently via a range of connectivity options. It is simply a centralised repository  of information that issuers and distributors can access in meeting their DDO,” he said.

Mr Donohoe confirmed the APIR service – which currently covers managed funds, managed accounts and superannuation products – can be easily expanded to include other banking and insurance products that are required to have TMDs.

TMDs are a requirement for all financial products captured under the DDO, which will place the onus of responsibility on product issuers and platform providers to ensure products are suitable for the market being distributed to.

For more information, please contact:

Chris Donohoe

02 6181 0590/ 0410 425 634

chris.donohoe@apir.com.au

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