The Federal Court of Australia has ordered financial services company BPS Financial Pty Ltd to pay 14 million Australian dollars (approximately $9.3 million) in penalties for operating an unlicensed financial services business and making misleading claims about its Qoin Wallet crypto product. The ruling, announced by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) on January 27, 2026, concludes years of legal action initiated in 2022.
The court found that between January 2020 and mid-2023, BPS Financial issued the Qoin Wallet—a non-cash payment facility tied to its proprietary Qoin digital token—and provided financial advice without holding the required Australian Financial Services Licence, breaching the Corporations Act. The penalty is split into $8 million for misleading and deceptive representations and $1.3 million for unlicensed conduct.
In her judgment, Judge Downes described BPS's actions as "serious and unlawful misconduct," citing involvement from senior management and inadequate compliance systems. Beyond the financial penalty, the court imposed a 10-year ban on BPS operating a financial services business without a license. The company must also publish court-mandated publicity notices on the Qoin Wallet app and website and cover most of ASIC's legal costs.
ASIC Chair Joe Longo emphasized the need for proper licensing and clear information for investors, stating, "Given the nature of these products, providers must have the appropriate licenses and authorisations, and investors must be able to make decisions based on clear and correct statements, especially as crypto products can be highly volatile, inherently risky and complex." The misleading claims made by BPS included that Qoin tokens were readily exchangeable for fiat or other crypto-assets, that the wallet was officially approved, and that the token was widely accepted by merchants.
In a related development, ASIC released its "Key issues outlook 2026" report, flagging regulatory gaps in digital assets as a key risk area. The regulator noted ongoing issues with unlicensed advice and misleading conduct in the crypto sector, emphasizing that ensuring clarity on licensing requirements will be a priority for the year.
