The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has suspended the majority of its planned policy and supervision initiatives in response to the impact of COVID-19.
The decision is intended to allow APRA-regulated entities to dedicate time and resources to maintaining their operations and supporting customers, while also enabling APRA to intensify its focus on monitoring and responding to the impact of a rapidly changing environment on entities' financial and operational capacity.
APRA is therefore suspending all substantive public consultations and actions to finalise revisions to the prudential framework that are currently underway or upcoming, including consultations on prudential and reporting standards. It will keep the situation under review, but presently does not plan to recommence consultation on any non-essential matters before 30 September 2020.
APRA may continue to progress certain data reporting initiatives where they are critical to meeting its mandate in the current environment, including new data collections related to the impacts of COVID-19.
Over the period ahead, APRA's primary supervision focus will be on monitoring the impact of COVID-19 on the financial and operational capacity of regulated institutions. As a result, APRA's supervision priorities outlined in January 2020 will be largely suspended until at least 30 September, particularly where they involve intensive engagement with regulated entities. APRA's refocused supervision effort will involve frequent communication with entities, monitoring key financial settings, such as capital and liquidity, and responding accordingly. These engagements will be conducted virtually, unless absolutely necessary, and will continue as long as necessary.
