ASIC’s June 2026 addition of website addresses to its AFS licence register gives investors another way to compare an online approach with the company behind it. The domain joins the legal name and licence status in an identity check.[1][2]
ASIC introduced the fields to address impostor websites using genuine firms’ details. A copied licence number can match a real company while the domain differs; publishing supplied domains adds another identifier to compare.[1]
What the register now distinguishes
| Register entry | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Principal website and other websites | Addresses supplied for the licensee’s financial-services businessSource 1 |
| No website operated | The licensee has declared that it does not operate a websiteSource 1 |
| Details not yet supplied | The licensee has not provided addresses; this differs from declaring no websiteSource 1 |
A maintenance obligation follows submission
Participation began voluntarily for existing licensees. Once a firm provides website details, it must update changes within ten business days; late notification can attract fees. ASIC asks for the principal domain and other relevant website addresses, rather than individual subpages. Firms using several trading brands therefore have an ongoing record-maintenance task alongside the initial submission.[2]
The June announcement said more than 6,500 licensees had been invited to participate. ASIC was seeking wider coverage and said compulsory powers could be considered if needed.[1]
How the additional field changes a broker check
Professional Registers Search accepts a firm’s name, AFS licence number, ACN or ABN. Most information is free to view. For a broker using an Australian company, this makes it possible to start with the legal entity and then compare the site address against the corresponding register entry, rather than relying on a number printed on the broker’s page.[3]
A mismatch and a missing field require different responses. Where a listed licensee website differs from the domain making contact, independently obtained licensee contact details can help resolve the discrepancy. An entry saying details have not been supplied leaves the website’s authenticity unresolved. The distinction prevents an incomplete record from being treated as either a clean match or evidence of an impostor.[1][2][3]
For multi-brand brokers, maintaining the link between the legal entity and its online brands becomes part of register administration. Professional Registers Search shows the current record: users search by company identifiers, with no website-URL search or historical archive of every previous domain.[2][3]
Sources & further reading
- ASIC confirms AFS licensee websites are published on the register ASIC · 17 Jun 2026 · Accessed 9 Oct 2026
- AFS licensees: submitting and updating website addresses ASIC · Accessed 9 Oct 2026
- Professional Registers Search: search methods and access ASIC · Accessed 9 Oct 2026