It's growing at breakneck speed and has been dogged by accusations of poor business practices - now the corporate regulator warns the private credit sector could be the source of Australia's next financial market collapse.

Private credit - non-bank lenders that provide loans directly to businesses outside of public markets - has been warned to lift its standards or face more stringent regulation by the outgoing chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, Joe Longo.

As he released a roadmap detailing how the watchdog plans to boost investment in the nation's public and private markets, Mr Longo said ASIC has already witnessed several missteps and failures in the opaque sector.

"If we fail to address the risks building in this sector, we could very well see our own 'Min

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