Government cancels sale of ASIC registry

Following a scoping study, government undertook a tender process to “market test the capacity of a private sector operator” to upgrade, operate and develop new products for the ASIC registry, the department said.

“The government sought final bids for the right to upgrade and operate the registry and to develop and sell value added products and services,” the department said.

“Following the evaluation process, the government has decided not to engage a private operator for the ASIC registry taking into account the overall financial benefits as well as the costs to government.”

According to Minister for Finance Mathias Cormann, government chose not to proceed with the sale as “the final bids received did not deliver a net financial benefit for the Commonwealth”.

“The government appreciates the private sector’s participation throughout the competitive tender process,” he said.

“Learnings from this process will now feed into the government’s consideration of future approaches and improvements to government registry functions.”

Nevertheless, the Department of Finance said it had “identified credible private operators” who could upgrade and operate the registry, and added that “the outcome of the tender process is a valuable resource” for shaping future decisions.

“The tender process found that there are proven technology platforms operating successfully in other jurisdictions and demonstrated that the private sector can play a role in the development of future options for Commonwealth registry functions,” the department said.

“The government will consider future options for the registry functions and will make any further announcements in due course.”