On 30 September 2026, three institutional developments concerned the responsibilities of financial firms and online platforms, the risk boundary for children's social media use, and the executive branch's authority over money appropriated by Congress.
China
The Measures for the Administration of Online Marketing of Financial Products took effect on 30 September. They were jointly issued by the People's Bank of China, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the market and financial regulators, the securities regulator, the intellectual property administration, the cyberspace administration and the foreign-exchange regulator. The measures apply when financial institutions market products online and when third-party internet platforms provide services under a financial institution's mandate. Other organisations and individuals may not conduct, or conduct in disguised form, this kind of marketing.
Financial institutions and commissioned platforms must operate within licensed business scopes. A third-party platform may not pass the mandate to another party, and any purchase link must direct a consumer to the financial institution's own platform. Financial institutions are responsible for the legality and compliance of marketing content and must establish review procedures; platforms must disclose basic information about the institutions and products involved. The official explanation also says platforms may not participate in concluding sales contracts, transferring funds, assessing suitability or setting loan limits, may not provide interactive advice on a financial product, and must clearly identify the institution that actually provides it. The rules also address algorithmic recommendations, livestream marketing, forced bundling, unwanted solicitation and misleading claims.
Australia
Material published by the High Court of Australia in case S166/2025 shows that the Commonwealth and the Minister for Communications filed their written defence on 25 September in Reddit's challenge to the under-16 social media account restrictions. The dispute concerns provisions of the Online Safety Act requiring a provider classified as an age-restricted social media platform to take reasonable steps to prevent children under 16 who ordinarily live in Australia from holding accounts. Reddit argues that the obligation impermissibly burdens the constitutionally implied freedom of political communication. The case has been referred to the Full Court.
In its submissions, the Commonwealth accepts that scientific uncertainty remains about causal links between social media use and mental-health outcomes. It nevertheless says account-related features including endless feeds, autoplay, personalised recommendations, time-limited content, popularity feedback and push notifications create credible risks and credible causal pathways for addictive use, disrupted sleep, anxiety, depression and other harms. On that basis, the government argues Parliament could adopt a precautionary protective measure before a scientific consensus emerged and that the burden is justified by the purpose of protecting children. The Court has not decided the merits of the challenge.
United States
On 29 September, the US Government Accountability Office issued its legal review of the President's 25 September special message to Congress. The message proposed rescinding more than US$800 million from 11 appropriation accounts, after which the Office of Management and Budget reapportioned the affected accounts to withhold the proposed amounts. The GAO found that the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 permits temporary withholding while Congress considers a rescission proposal, but does not permit the President to make appropriations expire by withholding them through their expiration date.
The GAO's preliminary review found that all 11 accounts expire at the end of the 2026 fiscal year, while the statutory congressional consideration period would end no earlier than 9 November. Unless Congress enacts a bill rescinding the money, the amounts must be made available for obligation before they expire. Associated Press reported that the proposed cuts cover programs serving immigrants and unaccompanied minors, migrant-student education, racial-tension reduction, minority business development and housing counselling. The GAO decision defines the authority available under appropriations law; it does not assess the merits of the programs.
Editorial framework: This briefing uses Sustenesis as an editorial framework for selecting facts, organising relationships and structuring information, with attention to differences and constraints in rules, responsibilities, resources, risks and social relations. Sustenesis functions here as a method of organisation rather than a position or commentary; the body remains limited to verifiable facts.
Sources
Cyberspace Administration of China: Measures for the Administration of Online Marketing of Financial Products
https://www.cac.gov.cn/2026-04/24/c_1778769008779432.htm
Cyberspace Administration of China: Questions and Answers on the Measures for the Administration of Online Marketing of Financial Products
https://www.cac.gov.cn/2026-04/24/c_1778769009037708.htm
High Court of Australia: Case No. S166/2025
https://www.hcourt.gov.au/cases-and-judgments/cases/current/case-no-s1662025
High Court of Australia: Submissions of the Defendants, Reddit, Inc. v Commonwealth of Australia & Anor
https://www.hcourt.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-09/Reddit-Cth_Def.pdf
The Guardian: Australian government concedes no scientific consensus on social media harms for teenagers – but ‘credible risks’ justify ban
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/sep/30/social-media-ban-australia-high-court-mental-health-risks-teens
U.S. Government Accountability Office: Impoundment Control Act of 1974: Review of the President's Special Message of September 25, 2026
https://www.gao.gov/products/b-338788
Associated Press: Watchdog says Trump can't cancel more than $800M in spending approved by Congress
https://apnews.com/article/trump-gao-spending-cuts-rescissions-af985be40c136d1d590761e21aae88b9
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