Design and Distribution Obligations

Design and Distribution Obligations (DDO) requires issuers and distributors of financial products to have a customer-centric approach to the design and distribution of their products. DDO aims to help customers obtain financial products that are appropriate for their objectives, financial situation and needs.

DDO applies to issuers and distributors of financial products that are sold to retail clients. The term ‘retail client’ is defined in the Corporations Act and can include individuals and small businesses (although for lending products, DDO only applies to retail clients where the loan is for personal or investment purposes – not business purposes).

We’ve set up an online hub to provide further information on DDO and how we’ve implemented these requirements. Please visit our DDO Hub.

Distributors of financial products have an obligation to take reasonable steps that are likely to result in distribution of the product being consistent with the Target Market Determination for that product.

Where a broker is subject to a best interest duty and their distribution of a particular product is equivalent to ‘personal advice’, the obligation to take reasonable steps does not apply to that retail product distribution conduct.

It’s important to note that this ‘personal advice exemption’ doesn’t extend to the reporting requirements under DDO and brokers utilising the exemption are still required to report the information outlined in our TMDs, including complaints information and information concerning significant dealings. 

If you receive a complaint regarding our products, you need to pass this onto your aggregator who’ll let us know.