26-117MR Federal Court orders record $300 million penalties in ASIC’s case over ‘egregious’ Union Standard and CFD operator misconduct | ASIC

26-117MR Federal Court orders record $300 million penalties in ASIC’s case over ‘egregious’ Union Standard and CFD operator misconduct | ASIC Newsroom Print Share Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Email The Federal Court has ordered record penalties totalling $300.2 million against collapsed contracts for difference (CFD) issuer Union Standard International Group Pty Ltd (Union Standard) and its former authorised representatives for systemic unconscionable conduct and other contraventions of the law between 2018 and 2020. Maxi EFX Global AU Pty Ltd (trading as EuropeFX) and BrightAU Capital Pty Ltd (trading as TradeFred) were the two former authorised representatives of Union Standard. Customers of EuropeFX and TradeFred lost more than $83 million. His Honour Justice Wigney yesterday ordered: $156.7 million in penalties against Union Standard, $114.1 million in penalties against EuropeFX, and $29.4 million in penalties against TradeFred. ASIC Chair Sarah Court said the penalties were the highest ever secured in connection with an ASIC matter and said the outcome would send a strong message of deterrence. ‘These record penalties reflect the egregious nature of CFD issuer misconduct in this case. ‘Union Standard, EuropeFX and TradeFred operated business models that deliberately targeted inexperienced and vulnerable people using aggressive sales tactics to pressure them to trade in highly risky CFD products.’ Union Standard was found liable for the conduct of EuropeFX and TradeFred, including their unconscionable conduct, as the Australian financial services (AFS) licensee that authorised them to operate ( 24-287MR ). The Court’s decision underscores that AFS licensees remain and will be held fully accountable for misconduct carried out under their licence. In addition to pecuniary penalties, the Court also ordered: an adverse publicity order against EuropeFX, a permanent restraint on EuropeFX from carrying on a financial services business, or a business related to financial products or financial services, or otherwise providing financial product advice, and that EuropeFX refund customers’ net deposits. The case marks the first time a civil penalty has been imposed against an entity, Union Standard, for failing to ensure its financial services were provided ‘efficiently, honestly and fairly’ by actively marketing and issuing its CFDs to customers in China when it knew, or ought to have known, those customers were being exposed to potential liability for breaching local Chinese law. Ms Court continued, ‘CFDs are complex, leveraged, over-the-counter (OTC) products that allow investors to speculate on price movements, often exposing them to significant losses.’ Account managers at EuropeFX and TradeFred reassured customers that the CFDs offered suited their financial situation and risk appetite. In reality, most customers lost money, and in up to 95% to 99% of cases, EuropeFX and TradeFred actually profited from their customers’ losses. ( 24-287MR ). In the 2024 financial year, 68% of retail CFD investors in Australia lost money, totalling more than $458 million, including $73 million in fees ( 26-004MR ). ‘Over time, customers were pressured to trade more and more money, exposing them to financial losses they could not afford, before being discouraged from lodging or pursuing their complaints,’ Ms Court said. ‘Entities that profit from their clients’ losses will face serious consequences. AFS licensees cannot outsource responsibility for misconduct carried out under their licence and will be held accountable.’ In delivering his reasons, Justice Wigney said, ‘EuropeFX's contraventions were unquestionably egregious, deliberate and flagrant. By its conduct, EuropeFX systematically exploited many vulnerable and financially naïve and gullible customers for its own financial gain.’ His Honour continued, ‘I find it difficult in this case to envisage a more serious case of contravening conduct. In my view, all the relevant circumstances of this case point to it being a case which warrants the strongest deterrence within the maximum penalty.’ Justice Wigney also highlighted the scale and impact of the misconduct on investors and the market, saying ‘The contravening conduct occurred over a lengthy period of time and would no doubt have continued had ASIC not eventually intervened. ‘It resulted in a very large number of vulnerable individuals, many of whom had relatively modest means, to suffer serious financial losses and consequently stress and anxiety. It undermined the integrity of Australia's financial services markets.’ ‘High penalties are needed to secure effective deterrence. They will send a clear message to other providers of financial services that stern penalties will be imposed for contravening conduct of the sort engaged in by these contraveners.’ The orders have been temporarily stayed until 13 July 2026. Download Judgment Background In December 2024 ( 24-287MR ), the Court found that EuropeFX and TradeFred employed a system of conduct and engaged in patterns of behaviour that were unconscionable as they: derived the bulk of their revenue from customers’ trading losses provided a remuneration incentive to account managers to encourage and pressure customers to deposit more funds into their trading accounts made misleading or deceptive representations, including about profits that could be generated failed to provide vulnerable customers with any adequate explanations about the complex financial products and the risks of trading in them pressured vulnerable investors to trade and deposit more funds into their trading accounts, including encouraging customers to fund their trading through superannuation accounts or credit cards provided personal advice to their customers when they were not licensed to do so. CFDs allow customers to speculate on the change in value of assets like shares, currencies and commodities, without owning them. Leverage can magnify investor losses, and even small price movements against a leveraged CFD position can result in significant losses, including loss of the entire investment. ASIC’s Moneysmart website has further information about CFDs and forex trading . Regulators in many jurisdictions have restricted or prohibited the sale of certain high-risk derivatives, including binary options, margin foreign exchange and some CFDs to retail investors. ASIC’s product intervention order on CFDs ASIC introduced a product intervention order (PIO) placing conditions on the issue and distribution of CFDs to retail investors in 2021, which has been effective in reducing the risk of significant harms to investors ( 22-082MR ). The PIO will expire on 23 May 2027, unless it is remade. ASIC will consult with industry in 2026 on the proposed way forward. ASIC’s recent review into the Australian CFD sector In January 2026, ASIC secured the return of nearly $40 million to more than 38,000 retail investors and drove substantial compliance improvement across Australia’s CFD sector following a whole of industry review ( 26-004MR ). The review drove widespread improvements in issuers’ target market determinations, customer onboarding questionnaires, reporting compliance and monitoring of customer trading outcomes. Related enforcement action In March 2026, the Federal Court ordered Oztures Trading Pty Ltd (trading as Binance Australia Derivatives) to pay a $10 million penalty after misclassifying more than 85% of its Australian customer base over a nine-month period, exposing 524 retail investors to high-risk crypto derivative products without the required consumer protections. This resulted in more than $12 million in losses and fees ( 26-055MR ). Further information about this case ASIC obtained asset restraint orders in the Federal Court against EuropeFX and TradeFred in 2019 to protect customers’ funds while its investigation was underway. Union Standard gave an undertaking to the Court to keep specified monetary amounts in a separate bank account ( 19-373MR ). On 8 July 2020, Union Standard entered into voluntary administration and liquidators were appointed on 3 September 2020. On 10 March 2020, TradeFred went into liquidation. In July 2020, ASIC suspended the AFS licence of Union Standard and in September 2020, ASIC cancelled its AFS licence ( 20-216MR ). ASIC commenced civil proceedings against Union Standard, EuropeFX and TradeFred in December 2020 ( 20-319MR ). Investors are still trying to recover millions of dollars lost following Union Standard's collapse.