July brought a clear signal that the world’s corporate registers are being reshaped by two forces at once: tougher transparency and identity-verification rules, and a drive to make registry data easier and cheaper to access. A German Federal Court ruling on the “right to be forgotten” tested where privacy ends and public disclosure begins, the UK pressed ahead with Companies House identity verification, and Australia’s ASIC modernised both its director-identity regime and its public search experience. Alongside these, we saw fresh business-formation data and renewed momentum for beneficial-ownership reform in New Zealand.
Stay ahead with our round-up of the latest global registry news shaping compliance, innovation, and digital transformation.
Here are this month's highlights:
New Zealand: AML Regulatory Push for a Single Supervisory Body
With the DIA set to become New Zealand’s single AML supervisor, momentum may finally be building for the long-discussed beneficial ownership register.
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Australia: ASIC Launches Refreshed Companies Search Service
ASIC has released a public beta of its companies and organisations register search, offering a simpler, more intuitive experience alongside the existing ASIC Connect service.
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Australia: Record New Businesses Created in June
Treasury figures show a record number of new businesses registered in June, underscoring continued growth in company formations.
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New Zealand: Developing a Register-Based Statistical System
Stats NZ outlines its shift toward producing official statistics from administrative registers, a change with implications for how register data is collected and used.
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Singapore: ACRA Opens 11th Corporate Service Providers Conference
At the CSIS conference on 13 July, ACRA Chief Executive Mrs Chia-Tern Huey Min addressed the theme “The Future of Corporate Services in the Age of AI and Compliance,” setting out how AI is reshaping the corporate services and registry ecosystem.
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Canada: Teranet Announces Upcoming CEO Retirement
Registry operator Teranet has announced the planned retirement of its CEO, signalling a leadership transition at one of the sector’s major players.
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Australia: Changes to the Director ID Regime and ASIC Enforcement Powers
A rundown of upcoming changes to ASIC’s Director Identification Number regime, alongside expanded enforcement powers — including a new administrative ground for ASIC to deregister a company where it believes information provided is materially misleading, false or deceptive.
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Germany: Non-Mandatory Register Data and the “Right to Be Forgotten”
A German Federal Court ruling confirms the global trend toward protecting private data in registers, finding that personal information not legally required in the business register — such as private home addresses and signatures — should not remain publicly available.
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Estonia: First Country to Create Digital Identities for AI Agents
Estonia plans to develop “AI ID codes” enabling AI agents to act on behalf of people and organisations in a verifiable, auditable way.
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Global: The Human Consent Registry — Deciding How AI Uses Your Likeness
A new public tool lets people register how their identity — name, image, voice, likeness and movement — may be used by AI systems, with options for allowed, allowed with terms, or prohibited.
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Japan: Beware of Government by AI
A sobering look at real-world cases where AI use in government has caused serious harm, raising cautionary lessons for public-sector automation.
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Foster Moore: Why Registry Advisory Beats the Big 4 for Registry Modernisation
Our latest blog explains why governments looking to modernise their registries should partner with Registry Advisory rather than defaulting to the Big 4 — and why genuine registry expertise matters when charting your registry’s future direction.
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Stay updated by visiting often our "Registry News Weekly" summary and the Foster Moore blog for more insights on these stories and other key registry news.
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