ASIC extends no-action period to Sept. 30 for crypto firms
ASIC extended a no-action period for digital asset firms applying for AFS, market or clearing licences to Sept. 30 and broadened relief to authorised representatives and intermediaries.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission extended its temporary no-action position to Sept. 30, moved from the previous June 30 deadline, to give digital asset businesses more time to apply for Australian Financial Services (AFS), market and clearing licences.
The extension, announced in May, expands the relief to firms operating through authorised representatives or intermediary arrangements with licensed entities. The regulator has received about 30 licence applications since it updated its digital asset guidance in October 2025.
ASIC introduced the no-action position after issuing Information Sheet 225 (INFO 225), which sets out how existing financial services laws apply to digital assets. INFO 225 states that many digital asset products meet the legal definition of financial products, meaning providers of those products will generally need an AFS licence. The regulator describes the legal definitions as broad and technology-neutral.
A High Court ruling in the Block Earner case reinforced that interpretation by finding the company’s former crypto yield product qualified as a financial product under the Corporations Act. That judgment has informed ASIC’s approach to licensing requirements for crypto firms.
The regulator said the temporary relief is separate from Australia’s Digital Asset Framework, which Parliament approved in April and is scheduled to commence on April 9, 2027. The new law will bring digital asset trading platforms and tokenised custody platforms into the financial services licensing regime and create new authorisation categories commonly referred to as DAP and TCP.
ASIC warned that firms obtaining licences under INFO 225 may need to add DAP and TCP authorisations once the new framework starts. ‘Many digital asset firms that apply for a licence based on INFO 225 will also need to add DAP and TCP authorisations to their licence once that regime commences,’ the regulator said in May.
The extension keeps the temporary enforcement relief in place while firms prepare and submit formal licence applications. Businesses relying on the relief are expected to continue lodging applications to secure ongoing regulatory cover.
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