Target Market Determinations

From 5 October 2021, DDO will require issuers and distributors to take a customer centric and targeted approach to the design and distribution of financial products. In doing so, DDO is intended to help customers acquire products that are consistent with their needs, objectives and financial situation.

DDO requires issuers to:

• create and maintain a publicly available TMD for products in scope of DDO;
• take reasonable steps that will, or are reasonably likely to, result in distribution being consistent with the TMD;
• review the TMD to ensure that it remains appropriate;
• notify ASIC of any significant dealings that are not consistent with the TMD; and
• keep records of decisions made in relation to the TMD and associated reviews (together with the reasons for those decisions).

DDO requires distributors to:

• not distribute a product unless a TMD is in place;
• take reasonable steps that will, or are reasonably likely to, result in distribution being consistent with the TMD;
• notify the issuer of significant dealings that are not consistent with the TMD; and
• collect and keep complete and accurate records of certain information and provide that information to issuers.

Please refer to the relevant TMD and our DDO Reporting Quick Reference Guide for more information on how to report information to ANZ. 

Under DDO, these obligations apply to anyone who engages in “retail product distribution conduct”.

“Retail product distribution conduct” is defined under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) to include:

• dealing in a financial product;
• giving a disclosure document in relation to offering a financial product;
• providing a PDS; and
• providing financial product advice.

The TMDs set out distribution conditions that apply to the relevant products.  Distribution conditions are restrictions or conditions on distribution which, if followed, are intended to make it likely that the customer is in the target market for that product.