ASIC tightens advertising guidance: what financial and credit service providers need to know

Insights27 Aug 2026

By Emma Donaghue, Selina Nutley, Jeunesse Meldrum and Kate Dart

ASIC has tightened its guidance on advertising financial products, financial advice services, credit products and credit services, with an increased focus on artificial intelligence (AI), greenwashing, social media and alignment with target market determinations (TMD).

The updated Regulatory Guide 234 Advertising financial products and services (including credit) (RG 234), published on 9 June 2026, reinforces the need for promotional material to be accurate, balanced and appropriately substantiated.

We outline the key changes to RG 234 and what financial and credit service providers should do now to respond.

Key takeaways

ASIC has removed the ‘good practice guidance’ from the title of the guide, reframing RG 234 as definitive regulatory guidance rather than an aspirational standard. This signals that non-compliance may more readily attract ASIC scrutiny.
Promoters using AI in marketing must implement controls to verify accuracy and avoid hallucinated claims.
A new ‘greenwashing’ sub-section directly targets misleading sustainability claims and cross references INFO 271 How to avoid greenwashing when offering or promoting sustainability-related claims.
The guide now expressly covers social media influencer (‘finfluencer’) arrangements and short-form content, such as Instagram Reels and TikTok videos.
Advertising must be consistent with a product’s TMD and promoters marketing complex products to a broad audience must assess vulnerability factors.
ASIC has consolidated Regulatory Guide 53 The use of past performance in promotional material (RG 53) into RG 234 and has withdrawn RG 53.
Promoters should keep records that can substantiate or justify any claims or representations made in their advertising material.

What’s changed in ASIC’s advertising guidance?

Item	Key updates	What you need to do
Artificial Intelligence (AI)	The guidance applies to advertising communicated through any medium and in any form, regardless of the specific technologies which may be used. This includes advertising generated by AI. Advertising for AI-enabled tools or digital advice should be balanced. The capabilities of these tools should not be overstated, with risks and limitations given equal prominence to benefits.	All AI-generated advertising should be reviewed and approved by a human before publication.
Greenwashing	Promoters should take care to avoid misrepresenting the extent to which a product or strategy is ‘environmentally friendly, sustainable or ethical’. The examples included in the guidance target absolute claims such as ‘we do not invest’, ‘no way’ and ‘fully excluded’ where those claims were contradicted by actual portfolio holdings.	All environmental, social and governance (ESG) claims and related advertising should be: reviewed against INFO 271; substantiated by reference to investment processes and holdings; and drafted to avoid absolute exclusion language.
Social media and finfluencers	Internet advertising now expressly includes in-app advertising, such as AI chat tools and push notifications, as well as social media influencer (‘finfluencer’) content across all major platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X. Finfluencers must ensure promotional material is not misleading and complies with all relevant financial services laws. The physical limitations of a particular medium are not a reason for producing an advertisement which lacks balanced information or may be misleading. Special care should be taken with any headline claim as QR codes or ‘click through’ links cannot cure a misleading impression.	Consider carefully whether short-form content provides balanced disclosure. If it does not, use an alternative format. Review influencer contracts, advertisement approval processes and distribution (posting) procedures. Do not rely on QR codes or ‘click through’ links to correct misleading impressions.
DDO alignment and target audience	Any statement in advertising about suitability of a product should be consistent with the product’s TMD. Promoters need to consider not only the target audience of an advertisement, but also the actual audience likely to see it, and whether the advertisement provides adequate information to that audience.	All advertising approval processes should include a TMD-consistency check. Assess vulnerability factors when marketing complex products (eg structured products, alternative funds, contracts for difference) to a broad audience.
Intermediaries and substantiation	Lead generators are now expressly identified as ‘promoters’ subject to the guidance. Product providers cannot rely on third parties, such as advisers or brokers, to correct a misleading advertisement.	Collate evidence substantiating all advertising claims. Review intermediary contracts to ensure they include appropriate RG 234 compliance obligations.

What should financial and credit service providers do now?

ASIC’s updates to RG 234 suggest a tightening of its regulatory and enforcement approach to advertising for financial products and services and may signal increased scrutiny of advertising across the sector.

Financial and credit service providers should review their advertising materials and approval processes, with particular attention to AI-generated content, ESG claims, social media and influencer arrangements, TMD alignment and the evidence used to substantiate advertising claims.

Please contact our HW Funds team if you would like assistance reviewing advertising materials, approval processes for more information and compliance frameworks in light of the updated guidance.

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