Source: Cointelegraph
Original: “Australian Regulator Asks High Court to Allow Appeal in Block Earner Case”
The Australian financial regulator will seek permission from the High Court to appeal a lower court ruling in favor of the fintech company Block Earner. The ruling determined that the company's cryptocurrency-related fixed income products do not fall under the definition of financial products.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) stated on May 21 that it hopes to request clarification from the High Court on the definition of financial products and to specify under what circumstances interest-bearing products and asset conversions are regulated.
“The definition of financial products is drafted in a broad and technology-neutral manner, and ASIC believes that clarifying this is in the public interest,” the regulator stated.
“This clarification is very important as it applies to all financial products and services, regardless of whether they involve crypto assets.”
On April 22, Federal Court judges David O’Callaghan, Wendy Abraham, and Catherine Button ruled that Block Earner's cryptocurrency-related fixed income products do not qualify as financial products, managed investment schemes, or derivatives under the Corporations Act.
ASIC stated that the court will consider its application. An appeal to the High Court requires special permission, which is granted only when significant legal questions are at stake or matters of public interest are involved.
A Block Earner spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the matter has now escalated into a “broader legal issue” concerning the definition of financial products, a question that “far exceeds the scope of Block Earner and the crypto industry.”
“We believe the Federal Court's full bench ruling in April was a strong and well-reasoned decision that upheld the legitimacy of our operations,” the spokesperson said. “We are confident in the reasonableness of that ruling and will respond to ASIC's application through appropriate legal channels.”
ASIC first filed a lawsuit against Block Earner in November 2022, claiming that the company needed a financial services license to offer its yield products, which became available on March 17, 2022, until the company closed the product on November 16.
In February 2024, an Australian court initially ruled that the fintech company needed a financial services license to operate its crypto yield products.
In June 2024, another ruling from the Australian Federal Court exempted Block Earner from any financial penalties, as it had acted “in good faith” and sought legal advice before launching the product, to which ASIC appealed.
Block Earner appealed the Federal Court's ruling regarding its need for a financial services license on July 9, 2024.
Related: Bold Technologies and My Aion Launch $2.5 Billion Smart City AI Platform
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
