Australia’s ASIC Secures $9.3M Penalty Against BPS Financial Over Misleading Qoin Wallet Claims
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), which overviews the country’s financial markets, has won a major case against unregulated crypto products. The Federal Court BPS Financial Pty Ltd, a financial services company, to pay AU$14 million (about $9.3 million USD) for making false claims and running its Qoin Wallet without a license.
The current verdict is the end of a multi-year enforcement case that shows how much more attention is being paid to digital asset offerings in Australia. BPS advertised and ran the Qoin Wallet, a payment system tied to its own Qoin digital coin, from January 2020 until mid-2023.
This was a flagrant violation of the Corporations Act because BPS did not have the necessary (AFSL).
Misleading Representations at the Core of the Case
The court found that BPS acted in a misleading and dishonest way by making a number of false assertions about the Qoin Wallet and token.
The company incorrectly represented that the product had been officially approved or registered, that Qoin tokens could be easily traded for cash or other , and that merchants were more willing to take them than they really were.
These claims were viewn as particularly difficultyatic because are inherently risky, volatile, complex, and speculative. The court apportioned the penalty as AU$1.3 million for the unlicensed conduct and AU$8 million for the misleading representations.
Judicial Rebuke and Additional Sanctions
Justice Downes that BPS’s actions constituted “serious and unlawful misconduct,” noting that top management was involved and that the company’s compliance mechanisms were inadequate.
Along with the large penalties, the court also forpoore BPS from offering any financial services for ten years without the required licenses. The corporation must also post court-ordered public notices on the Qoin Wallet app and its website, and pay a substantial portion of ASIC’s legal fees.
Joe Longo, the chair of ASIC, made a statement later than the decision that stressed the broader regulatory message: “Because of the nature of these products, providers must have the right licenses and authorizations, and investors must be able to make decisions based on clear and correct statements, especially since crypto products can be very volatile, risky, and complicated.”
Background on the Qoin Product and Ongoing Enforcement
BPS Financial sold the Qoin Wallet as a way to make payments without cash, using the Qoin token. They touted it as a simple way to make payments.
However, ASIC’s investigation, which led to civil penalty proceedings launched in 2022, exposed the lack of proper authorization and the deceptive nature of promotional materials. Earlier court decisions in 2024, upheld on appeal in 2025, set the standard for who is responsible for misleading conduct.
ASIC is paying more attention to and fintech, and this case fits into that. There are still gaps in the rules that put consumers at risk. Chair Longo recently wrote an outlook report in which she raised concerns about digital assets, including the potential for consumer harm from illegal activities and the need for clearer industry laws.
This punishment for BPS Financial is a to other crypto providers: they must comply with licensing requirements and be honest in their marketing. The Australian government is still cracking down on anyone who breaks the rules, even as the rules change. For example, some stablecoins and wrapped tokens are now excluded from certain rules.
