APRA currently supervises institutions holding A$8.6 trillion in assets for Australian depositors, policyholders and superannuation fund members.

The commission was based at the Australian Automobile Association Building, Canberra[Note 1] and also had offices in Melbourne and Sydney.

APRA became prominent in the collapse of HIH Insurance in 2001 and for its investigation into the National Australia Bank foreign currency deal scandal in 2004.

[10] In 2018, Peter Harris, the chair of the Productivity Commission, was critical of the role of APRA in limiting price competition in banking.

[11] Representatives of APRA appeared before the Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry during 2018.

[12] In 2018, APRA created the restricted authorised deposit-taking institution (RADI)[13] licensing framework to encourage new entrants and competition to the existing banking system.