Conference
Australian Regulatory Summit 2026
Presented by Thomson Reuters Events ANZ in collaboration with Asian Legal Business
Thursday 20 August 2026 | Four Seasons Hotel Sydney
Regulation under pressure: enforcement, accountability and the new risk frontiere
In 2026, regulators are not retreating. They are intensifying.
ASIC has doubled its enforcement operations. APRA's accountability frameworks now carry personal liability. AUSTRAC has moved from education to enforcement. And the obligations bearing down on compliance, legal and risk functions, across AI, cyber, climate reporting, financial crime and workforce compliance are expanding faster than governance frameworks can keep pace.
The Australian Regulatory Summit 2026 is built for the leaders navigating this environment: General Counsel, Chief Risk Officers, Chief Compliance Officers, Board Directors, senior executives and the financial crime, privacy and governance practitioners who carry the weight of regulatory accountability every day.
This is not a compliance update. It is a senior-level examination of where enforcement is heading, what regulators now assume your organisation can already do, and what will no longer be tolerated by 2027.
Date
Thursday 20 August 2026
Time
8 am - 6 pm
Location
Four Seasons Hotel Sydney
Super Early Bird pricing**
$449 excl. GST
Early Bird pricing*
$499 excl. GST
Standard pricing
$549 excl. GST
Service Providers/ Consultants
$1,399 excl. GST
*Early bird pricing ends 16 July 2026
**Super early bird limited to 50 people
Earns up to 5 CPD points
Why this year matters
Hear directly from top regulators and industry experts
Gain practical strategies for compliance, governance, and risk
Stay ahead of regulatory reform and digital disruption
Earn CPD credits with expert-led, non-promotional content
Network with over 300 legal, GRC & executive leaders
Who should attend
Audit, risk and compliance professionals
Legal and regulatory affairs teams
Financial services and governance executives
Cybersecurity and digital innovation specialists
Board directors and executive leadership
Policy and public sector regulators
What past attendees and sponsors say
“Congratulations to you and the team for a very well-run event. There was a great energy in the room and a great line up of content.”
Alexandra Tighe
Partner, Clayton Utz
“All the panels were extremely thought provoking and I loved the colour coded sessions and headphones — I'd never experienced this format before.”
Alysia Abeyrante
Senior Manager, Digital Policy, National Australia Bank
“We were thrilled to sponsor the Australian Regulatory Summit. This event provided an invaluable platform to connect with key stakeholders and industry experts.”
GRC Solutions
What will be covered in the one‐day intensive program
Where director and executive liability sits now, including when governance documentation protects decision-makers and when it becomes evidence against them
What regulators are doing with your culture data, and how conduct evidence is being used in enforcement
What AI governance looks like in practice, not in policy, and where regulators are already intervening
How operational resilience is assessed after an incident, and what "demonstrable uplift" actually requires
What the first cycle of mandatory climate reporting has revealed, and where enforcement scrutiny will focus next
How Tranche 2 AML/CTF obligations are landing in practice, and who is struggling and why
What the Scams Prevention Framework, sanctions regime and VASP licensing changes mean for compliance functions now
What regulators will no longer tolerate by 2027, what organisations are getting wrong and what must change
Speakers
Brendan Thomas
Chief Executive Officer, AUSTRAC
Katie Miller
Deputy Chief Executive Officer Regulation, AUSTRAC
Luke Irwin ISSMP, CISSP, CISM
Principal Consultant & Chief Executive Officer, Aegis Cybersecurity
Hugh Watson
Assistant Secretary, Australian Sanctions Office
Andrew Hottes FBCS CITP
Author, Classroom at the Crossroads ISO 27001 & 42001 Lead Auditor
Izabel Greco
General Manager - Prudential, Risk Strategy & Compliance, TAL Australia
Anneliese Cooper
Lawyer, Human Rights Law Centre
Sunita Bose
Managing Director, Digital Industry Group Inc.
Jack Morgan
Head of Policy, FinTech Australia
Krzysztof Lyson
Global Head of Compliance, Humm Group
Charlotte Davidson
Interim Chief Executive Officer, IDCARE Group
Ramanathan Karuppiah
Financial Crime Compliance Specialist & Certified Auditor
Professor Vivienne Brand
Professor of Corporate Law, Flinders University, Non-Executive Director
Gavin Coles
Global Sanctions Officer, OFX
Marcus Zeltzer
Founder, Yellow Canary
Jamal Waqar
Head of Research, Experience, Data and Analytics, Standards Australia
Event agenda
Please note: Agenda subject to change
Registration [ Opens at 8 am ]
8:45 am - 8:55 am
Welcome from Thomson Reuters
8:55 am - 9:35 am
Opening keynote
9:35 am - 10:05 am
Principal Partner keynote
10:05 am - 10:20 am
Platinum Partner session 1
Morning tea and networking [ 45 mins ]
Stream A - Governance, culture & accountability - The personal stakes
11:05 am - 11:40 am
Culture under scrutiny: Building conduct frameworks that hold up
11:40 am - 12:15 pm
Compliance drift: Governing payroll risk with control and accountability
12:15 am - 12:35 pm
Gold sponsor spotlight
Stream B - Cyber, AI & Digital Governance
11:05 am - 11:40 am
Governing AI without a rulebook: What does compliance mean now?
11:40 am - 12:15 pm
Operational resilience — From disruption to regulatory recovery
12:15 am - 12:35 pm
Gold sponsor spotlight
Stream C - Fighting financial crime: From compliance to enforcement
11:05 am - 11:40 am
Tranche 2 one year in — Who's struggling and why
11:40 am - 12:15 pm
Session to be announced
12:15 am - 12:35 pm
Gold sponsor spotlight
Lunch [ 45 mins ]
Stream A - Governance, culture & accountability - The personal stakes
1:35 pm - 2:10 pm
Whistleblower protections in practice: What investigations now reveal
2:10 pm - 2:45 pm
Mandatory climate reporting: First cycle, first failures
2:45 pm - 3:20 pm
Psychosocial risk enforcement: What early investigations reveal
Stream B - Cyber, AI & Digital Governance
1:35 pm - 2:10 pm
Cyber risk quantification: Bringing financial discipline to regulatory cyber governance
2:10 pm - 2:45 pm
Privacy Act reforms: What changed, what’s live, and what’s coming next
2:45 pm - 3:20 pm
Deepfakes, synthetic identity & the new fraud frontier
Stream C - Fighting financial crime: From compliance to enforcement
1:35 pm - 2:10 pm
Scams prevention framework — One year in
2:10 pm - 2:45 pm
How to deal with sanctions risk in a geopolitically unstable world
2:45 pm - 3:20 pm
Payments licensing and the new VASP regime: What compliance functions need to build now
Afternoon tea and networking [ 35 mins ]
3:55 pm - 4:10 pm
Platinum Partner session 2
4:10 pm - 4:30 pm
Director liability in 2026: Where the lines are now
4:30 pm - 5:15 pm
What regulators will no longer tolerate by 2027
5:15 pm - 5:20 pm
MC close & prize draw
Networking beverages and canapes [ Until 6 pm ]
Sponsors
Silver Partner
Yellow Canary is the leading provider of an automated, AI-powered compliance audit platform. Built for Australian employers and their partners, it detects, quantifies, and diagnoses compliance risk across pay, Modern Awards, enterprise agreements, superannuation, and long service leave.
Through historical and ongoing audits, Yellow Canary helps organisations reduce human error, strengthen governance, and prevent costly compliance breaches before they escalate
Exhibitors
GRC Solutions is the leading provider of award-winning compliance eLearning to the banking and financial services industry. Throughout Australia clients rely on our expert, industry-relevant training and technology solutions, including Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Anti-Bribery and Corruption (AB&C), Modern Slavery, Privacy, ESG, and Workplace Behaviours and essential soft skills. We pride ourselves on delivering exceptional service and effective, customisable training that protects and empowers organisations throughout the Asia Pacific.
MCO provides compliance management software that helps organisations reduce risk and manage regulatory obligations. Its platform automates key compliance functions in one system, giving firms clear oversight of employee, transaction, third‑party and obligations‑related activity. Offered as a unified suite or à la carte, MCO’s four products streamline workflows, standardise processes and support proactive compliance.
Nexiant provides Fraud Prevention and Risk Management solutions for regulated and risk-aware organisations globally. Its solutions support customer and business onboarding, identity verification, transaction monitoring and payment fraud prevention, helping teams identify risk earlier, strengthen controls and make more confident decisions.
Frequently asked questions
The summit uses a silent disco-style setup — you'll be given a headset on arrival and can tune in to whichever stream you choose in real time. Switch between streams as topics shift throughout the day, so you're always in the session most relevant to you.
Yes — the Australian Regulatory Summit 2026 offers CPD credits. The day is delivered through expert-led, non-promotional content designed to meet the standards required for formal CPD recognition.
The summit is designed for senior professionals — General Counsel, Chief Risk Officers, Chief Compliance Officers, Board Directors and financial crime, privacy and governance practitioners. With 300+ attendees expected, it's also a significant networking opportunity.
Absolutely — and we'd encourage it. With three streams running simultaneously, sending representatives across different functions means your organisation gets full coverage of the day's content. For group ticketing enquiries, and special pricing contact eventsanz@thomsonreuters.com.
We're always looking for senior practitioners and subject matter experts to contribute to the programme. If you'd like to be considered as a speaker, please reach out to Katie at katie.ardzejewski@thomsonreuters.com and we'll be in touch.
2025 Past Event Overview
Past event highlights
Previous sponsors
Principal Partner
Platinum Partners
Sapphire Partners
Gold Partners
Silver Partner
Built for the leaders navigating regulatory accountability in 2026. Register now and stay ahead of what's coming.
Contact us
Attendee inquiries: eventsanz@thomsonreuters.com
Sponsorship enquiries: david.lewis3@thomsonreuters.com
Speaking opportunities: katie.ardzejewski@thomsonreuters.com