Australia’s top court overturns Block Earner appeal in ASIC licensing dispute

Australia’s High Court has unanimously ruled 7-0 in favor of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, finding that Block Earner’s former fixed-yield crypto product required a financial services licence under existing law.

According to a June 17 court document, the High Court determined that the product offered by Web3 Ventures Pty Ltd, which operates as Block Earner, functioned as a facility for financial investment and also met the legal definition of a derivative. The court found that investor returns depended on movements in underlying digital asset values and exchange rates.

As a result of the ruling, the case will return to the Full Federal Court, which will now consider ASIC’s appeal relating to penalties tied to earlier proceedings against the company.

ASIC said in a statement on Wednesday that it launched civil penalty proceedings against Block Earner in November 2022 over concerns that the Earner product had been offered without the required licence. According to the regulator, investors who used the product did not receive important protections available under Australia’s financial services framework.

High Court overturns earlier appeal decision

Court records and ASIC’s statement show the dispute has moved through several stages of Australia’s judicial system over the past two years.

The Federal Court ruled in February 2024 that Block Earner had operated an unregistered managed investment scheme. Although the court later decided in June 2024 not to impose financial penalties, ASIC challenged that outcome and filed an appeal the same month.

Soon afterward, Block Earner lodged a cross-appeal on July 9, 2024. The Full Federal Court sided with the company in April 2025, allowing the cross-appeal and dismissing ASIC’s challenge. Wednesday’s High Court judgment overturned that decision.

Welcoming the outcome, ASIC Chair Sarah Court said the ruling supports the regulator’s long-held view that Australia’s financial product laws apply to new technologies without requiring legislative changes.

“This reinforces ASIC’s long-standing position that the definition of financial product is broad and technology neutral and so captures new and emerging products without the need to amend the legislation,” Court said.

Block Earner continues crypto lending plans

Although the legal dispute centered on the Earner yield product, Block Earner voluntarily shut down the offering in November 2022 and has since redirected its business toward lending services.

In May 2026, the company received an Australian Credit Licence and announced plans to develop crypto-backed home loans. At the time, Block Earner said the product would allow borrowers to use Bitcoin as collateral for home financing without selling their holdings.

The licence was notable because it represented the first time a digital asset platform in Australia had been authorized to provide credit products under its own licence.

Earlier company statements also linked the initiative to growing interest in integrating digital assets into traditional mortgage markets. Similar discussions have emerged in the United States, where federal housing authorities and lawmakers have explored frameworks that could allow certain regulated crypto holdings to be considered during mortgage assessments.