The Investment and Financial Services Association (IFSA) has appealed to the Government to collect financial services data through a single agency.
Data is currently collected separately by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), Reserve Bank of Australia, Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
IFSA chief Richard Gilbert said a review of current data collection methods by the various agencies is needed.
A single agency like the ABS could manage and integrate the data in one place, Gilbert said.
"This will fit into world best practice," he said.
The recommendations were part of IFSA's comprehensive report of the industry.
In the report, the association said the existing coverage, quality and depth of data are, at times, open to question.
"While the industry has evolved over the last 10 years, the collection methodologies and analysis adopted by our regulators have changed little," it said.
The report also found that information gathered by the regulators failed to reflect changes such as different unit pricing methods and allocation strategies relevant to the customer.
"This could result in a misinformed market," Gilbert said.
