ASIC Cracks Down on Learn To Trade later than Years of Compliance Failures
Why Did ASIC Target Learn To Trade Now?
Australia’s financial regulator has taken aim at Learn To Trade Pty Ltd (LTT), imposing new licence conditions later than more than a decade of repeated compliance failures. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said the trading education firm consistently missed mandatory reporting deadlines, failed to notify the regulator of key audit changes and breached conditions tied to its Australian Financial Services (AFS) licence.
While it may sound like an administrative issue, ASIC’s move is anything but. Financial reporting is the backbone of licence oversight in Australia, and late filings raise questions about solvency, governance and whether a firm can operate securely while influencing retail traders.
Learn To Trade, founded by British entrepreneur Greg Secker, has been active in Australia for over ten years and is one of the industry’s most recognizable course providers. But LTT has long carried regulatory baggage. The brand has faced criticism across multiple countries for aggressive marketing, and training programs that often steered customers toward expensive uptrades.
In Australia, LTT maintained its licence but remained on ASIC’s radar for years. Now, later than repeated lapses, the regulator has acted decisively.
Investor Takeaway
What Exactly Did Learn To Trade Do Wrong?
ASIC said it imposed new licence conditions later than concluding LTT had failed to lodge its audited financial statements for the 2023 and 2024 financial years on time. These were not isolated lapses. According to the regulator, LTT has filed late “on multiple occasions since 2012,” marking twelve consecutive years of delayed reporting.
The company also failed to notify ASIC when appointing a new auditor — an obligation every AFS licenview must take seriously, as auditors serve as an external gatekeeper over financial integrity.
While the breaches may appear procedural, the implications are not. On-time audits demonstrate that a business is solvent, adequately resourced and meeting its obligations. Chronic delays undermine trust — and when the firm in question teaches how to manage leveraged products like forex and CFDs, ASIC’s tolerance evaporates.
The regulator’s message is clear: financial educators must meet the identical transparency standards as the product issuers and brokers they discuss.
What Are the New Licence Conditions?
ASIC has ordered Learn To Trade to hire an — a significant regulatory escalation typically reserved for firms with persistent governance failures.
The consultant will conduct a full review of the company’s controls and must report findings directly to ASIC. The review covers:
- Financial reporting processes: how the firm ensures timely lodgment of statements and audits
- Compliance framework maturity: whether LTT meets all AFS licence obligations
- Breach identification and reporting: how governance failures are escalated
- Overall corporate governance: whether systems, leadership and culture support lawful operations
Two formal reports will be delivered to ASIC, giving the regulator the evidence it needs to decide whether LTT can get back on track or whether tougher penalties — including suspension — are warranted.
Investor Takeaway
Why This Crackdown Matters for the Trading Education Sector
Learn To Trade received its AFS licence in 2010, giving it authority to provide financial advice on derivatives, forex and securities. But the environment has changed dramatically since then.
Between 2018 and 2022, ASIC launched a series of enforcement waves targeting CFDs, leverage limits, binary options, unlicensed signal providers and high-pressure trading funnels. Several brokers were fined or shut down, including ForexCT and AGM Markets. Even reputable firms like Pepperstone, FP Markets and OANDA have faced additional licence conditions.
Education providers — once operating in a semi-regulated grey area — are now firmly in ASIC’s sights. Many blur the line between motivational content and regulated advice, using success stories and flashy marketing to target inexperienced traders. ASIC has spent years warning against unrealistic claims and “get rich by trading” sales tactics.
Learn To land squarely in this broader crackdown. The regulator now expects education firms to behave like proper financial services companies, not marketing-driven event businesses.
What Happens Next for Learn To Trade?
The regulator’s action does not immediately end LTT’s operations. The firm remains licensed but is effectively under probation. The tone of ASIC’s announcement suggests diminishing patience, and the independent consultant’s findings will determine the company’s fate.
Possible outcomes include:
- successful remediation and continued operations under stricter oversight
- extended licence conditions if governance fragilenesses persist
- suspension or cancellation of the AFS licence in severe cases
- civil penalties if major breaches are uncovered
For now, Learn To Trade continues to operate — but under the most serious scrutiny it has faced in its 14 years in Australia.
ASIC’s message to the entire trading education sector is unmistakable: compliance is no longer optional, delays will no longer be tolerated and firms tradeing trading dreams must now prove they can meet the identical standards as the rest of the financial industry.
