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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsASIC suspended the Australian financial services licence of Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd on 17 April 2018 after identifying several compliance failures. The suspension applied to AFSL 305539 and was initially set to last for at least 10 weeks and no more than six months.
It was not the licence of the separate New Zealand-registered company, Direct FX Ltd, which held AFSL 291471. More importantly for former and prospective clients, the suspension was not temporary in the long run: ASIC cancelled AFSL 305539 effective 8 October 2018, and Direct FX Trading was subsequently wound up.
Which Direct FX entity was affected?
The ASIC action concerned Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd, an Australian company with:
- AFSL: 305539
- ACN: 120 189 424
- ABN: 58 120 189 424
ASIC amended its original announcement to make clear that this company was different from Direct FX Ltd, which held AFSL 291471. Articles that refer only to “Direct FX” can therefore create confusion about which business was subject to the suspension.
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The Australian company’s ABN record now shows the ABN as cancelled from 25 June 2025. That is separate from the earlier regulatory timeline, which began with the AFSL suspension in April 2018.
What did the suspension mean?
ASIC suspended AFSL 305539 on 17 April 2018. Its media release was published on 26 April 2018.
The suspension was scheduled to last for a minimum of 10 weeks and up to six months, depending on whether Direct FX met ASIC’s specified conditions. If it ran for the full period, it would have ended on 17 October 2018.
During the suspension, Direct FX could take limited action to close out existing client positions. It was not authorised to continue ordinary financial-services activity or open new trading positions. The suspension also affected financial services provided by the company’s authorised representative, Core Liquidity Markets Pty Ltd, where those services relied on authority granted under Direct FX’s licence.
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Why did ASIC suspend the AFSL?
ASIC identified three main compliance problems.
1. Failure to meet net tangible asset requirements
Direct FX failed to comply with the net tangible asset requirements in Class Order 12/752. ASIC said the company did not maintain sufficient cash and cash equivalents on multiple occasions.
The issue was significant because an Australian financial-services licensee must maintain the financial resources required for the activities it conducts. ASIC’s later cancellation notice said Direct FX continued entering transactions when its net tangible assets were below 75% of the required $1 million.
2. Late response to an ASIC direction
Under section 912C(3) of the Corporations Act 2001, ASIC required Direct FX to provide an audit report. The report was to address matters including:
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- competence to provide financial services;
- the company’s compliance attitude; and
- its financial soundness.
The report was due on 9 February 2018, but Direct FX did not provide it until 12 April 2018.
3. Failure to replace key persons
ASIC also said Direct FX failed to replace key persons named on its AFS licence. Key-person requirements are intended to ensure that a licensee has appropriately qualified people responsible for the business and its compliance obligations.
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ASIC said these failures gave it reason to believe that Direct FX was likely to contravene the general licensee obligations in section 912A of the Corporations Act.
What triggered ASIC’s review?
The review followed a breach report submitted by Direct FX on 10 October 2017. The report concerned the requirement to maintain $1 million in net tangible assets under section 912AB(4)(b) of the Corporations Act.
ASIC then examined Direct FX’s compliance with its financial obligations and required the audit report. The delay in providing that report became one of the issues cited in both the suspension and the later cancellation.
The suspension became a cancellation
Direct FX’s licence was not restored after the suspension. ASIC cancelled AFSL 305539 effective 8 October 2018. The cancellation announcement was published on 18 October 2018.
In its cancellation notice, ASIC described the compliance failures as serious and continued. It said Direct FX had:
- failed to provide required daily and monthly client-money reconciliations;
- allowed clients to enter trades while the licence was suspended;
- continued entering transactions while its net tangible assets were below 75% of the required $1 million;
- failed to replace key persons;
- lacked sufficient resources to provide financial services efficiently, honestly and fairly;
- failed to properly understand or discharge its AFS-licensee obligations; and
- failed to comply with ASIC’s direction to provide the audit report.
ASIC specifically stated that Direct FX continued to open new trading positions during the suspension. That was materially different from the limited permission to close out existing positions.
What happened to the company?
The Supreme Court of New South Wales ordered the winding up of Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd on 11 October 2018, three days after the AFSL cancellation took effect. Jason Mark Tracy and Vaughan Neil Strawbridge were appointed joint liquidators.
ASIC required the company to maintain external-dispute-resolution membership and adequate professional-indemnity insurance until 30 April 2019. The purpose was to reduce the impact of the cancellation on past and current clients, rather than to allow the company to resume normal brokerage operations.
What should former clients do?
Anyone who held an account with the affected Australian entity should treat old claims, account statements and correspondence as matters involving a cancelled and liquidated company—not as evidence that the broker remains an active Australian licensee.
- Identify the legal entity. Check account agreements, payment records and emails for “Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd” and AFSL 305539. Do not assume that every business using the Direct FX name was the same company.
- Keep evidence. Preserve account statements, trade confirmations, deposit and withdrawal records, complaints, emails and screenshots.
- Check the liquidation records. The ASIC published notices record the winding-up order and the liquidators’ appointment.
- Use official registers. Verify any claimed Australian licence through ASIC’s Professional Registers Search rather than relying on an old broker website or comparison page.
- Obtain professional advice for a live claim. The appropriate next step can depend on the date of the transaction, the contracting entity, the liquidation process and any applicable dispute-resolution scheme.
How to check an Australian broker’s licence
ASIC’s current verification route is:
- Go to ASIC → Search ASIC registers.
- Select Professional Registers search.
- Search by the organisation name, AFSL number, ACN or ABN.
- Review the licence status, start date, conditions and restrictions.
The search includes Australian financial-services licensees. ASIC says the professional-register data is processed once daily, so it is a better source for current status than historical articles describing a broker as active in 2018.
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| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Direct FX reports an NTA breach | 10 October 2017 |
| Audit report due to ASIC | 9 February 2018 |
| Audit report provided | 12 April 2018 |
| AFSL 305539 suspended | 17 April 2018 |
| AFSL cancellation takes effect | 8 October 2018 |
| Company wound up by the NSW Supreme Court | 11 October 2018 |
Primary sources include ASIC’s suspension notice, ASIC’s cancellation notice, the ASIC published notice concerning the liquidation and the ASIC Professional Registers Search.
FAQ
Was Direct FX’s licence only temporarily suspended?
It was temporarily suspended in April 2018, but ASIC later cancelled AFSL 305539 effective 8 October 2018. The licence was not reinstated.
Which company did ASIC suspend?
ASIC suspended Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd, ACN 120 189 424, which held AFSL 305539. This was not the separate Direct FX Ltd entity, which held AFSL 291471.
Could Direct FX trade during the suspension?
It could close out existing client positions, but it was not authorised to conduct ordinary financial-services activity or open new positions. ASIC later said Direct FX allowed clients to enter trades and continued opening new positions while suspended.
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Why was the AFSL cancelled?
ASIC cited serious and continued compliance failures, including NTA problems, missing client-money reconciliations, a late audit report, failure to replace key persons and insufficient resources and understanding of licensee obligations.
Is Direct FX Trading still an active Australian broker?
No. AFSL 305539 was cancelled in October 2018, and the company was wound up by the Supreme Court of New South Wales on 11 October 2018. Its ABN is also recorded as cancelled from 25 June 2025.
The Bottom Line
ASIC’s April 2018 action against Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd began as a time-limited suspension of AFSL 305539, driven by financial-resource, reporting and key-person failures. The outcome was more serious: ASIC cancelled the licence in October 2018 after identifying continued compliance problems, including new trading activity during the suspension. Direct FX Trading was then placed into liquidation, so current licence checks and any client claim should be based on official ASIC records—not old broker listings.
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