Final report on Discretionary Mutual Funds supports industry ‘approval tick’

06 December 2021

The following commentary has been issued by Melina Morrison, CEO of the BCCM in response to today’s release of the final report into the risk protection crisis facing Australia’s amusement, leisure and recreation sector.

The report by the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman found that a Discretionary Mutual Fund (DMF) was the best way to address the crisis which has left many operators in the leisure and amusements sector struggling to find risk cover due to a hardening of insurance markets worldwide.

Ms Morrison welcomed the Ombudsman’s findings that DMFs could provide cost effective alternate risk protection, which was essential to ensuring the viability of small businesses in broken markets.

“DMFs are a proven model, provided they are accompanied by good governance, robust management and adequate capital and, to that end, we will be working with government to develop a set of guidelines to ensure best practice for the industry”, Ms Morrison said.

“These will be a tick of approval to show consumers and government that a DMF meets the industry standards of the sector’s reputable, sustainable and well governed businesses.”

Read our initial media release dated 20 October 2021.

Please contact Anthony if you’d like to discuss this report.