Denes Blazer

In a win for ASIC, the Federal Court has found that non-bank lender Firstmac Limited breached the design and distribution obligations, introduced in 2021, by marketing a managed investment scheme that could be unsuitable for customers’ financial needs. 

A judge has ordered soft class closure ahead of mediation in a class action against five major banks over alleged foreign exchange rate-rigging, saying the applicant’s subjective view on what will assist mediation should not be imposed on the banks.

A judge has questioned the applicant’s opposition to soft class closure in a class action accusing five major banks of rate-rigging, a measure the banks say could save “tens of millions” in legal expenses. 

Citibank has argued group members should be asked to sign on to a class action accusing five major banks of entering a cartel agreement to rig foreign exchange rates before evidence is filed in the case, saying it was impossible to know how much the claims were worth. 

Five major banks including JPMorgan, Citibank and UBS have denied all wrongdoing in a class action accusing them of entering a cartel agreement to rig foreign exchange rates and argue the claims were brought out of time or are barred by settlements in overseas proceedings.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has dropped all but one claim against Rio Tinto in a four-year-long case over disclosures related to its troubled $5.8 billion acquisition of a Mozambique coal mining business and abandoned all claims against the mining giant’s former CEO and CFO.

Rio Tinto will face a penalty in proceedings brought by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission alleging the mining giant misled shareholders about the resources of a Mozambique mining company it acquired for $5.8 billion in 2011 and later offloaded for $70 million.

A judge has given the green light to amended pleadings in a class action accusing major banks of entering a cartel agreement to rig foreign exchange rates, bringing a two-year fight over the pleadings closer to resolution.

A judge has approved a $50 million settlement in a shareholder class action against failed training company Vocation and auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers, but questioned whether the $10.9 million commission and $12.75 million legal bill could have been “materially lower” had the case been run by one funder and firm instead of two.

The judge considering the $50 million settlement reached in the shareholder class action against failed training company Vocation and auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers has signalled his likely approval of the deal, but wants a senior lawyer to tell the court why the funding commission is reasonable.