Hong Kong-based digital asset prime broker LTP has obtained an Australian Financial Services License from ASIC, authorizing it to provide services exclusively to wholesale clients. The license permits LTP to advise on and deal in securities, managed investment schemes, and deposit and payment products, but explicitly excludes retail investors from its scope of operations.
The timing proves significant as Australia’s regulatory clock runs down. Following parliamentary approval of the Corporations Amendment (Digital Assets Framework) Bill in early April, crypto platforms face a hard June 30 deadline to secure AFSL authorization. Companies operating without proper licensing after that date lose enforcement protection and risk penalties reaching ten percent of annual turnover. Despite roughly 400 crypto platforms registered in Australia, only around ten percent held the necessary ASIC licenses as of April.
LTP positioned the authorization as a gateway to institutional participants including funds, market makers and asset managers rather than everyday traders. The firm emphasized its focus on tokenized real-world assets such as property, private credit and digital debt instruments, which ASIC treats as managed investment schemes or securities under existing financial law.
The wholesale-only restriction reflects ASIC’s broader strategy of bringing stablecoins and tokenized assets within established regulatory frameworks while maintaining differentiated treatment between institutional and retail channels. LTP did not disclose client numbers, revenue projections or pricing details for its Australian operations.
FXnCO Insight
Wholesale licensing offers a compliant bridgehead for institutional crypto services in Australia, but the low AFSL uptake among existing platforms suggests many operators may exit rather than meet ASIC’s standards before the deadline.
Source: Finance Magnates