On 9 December 2025, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) issued new measures that build on the previous stablecoin relief by exempting intermediaries from the requirement to hold separate Australian financial services (AFS), Australian market, or clearing and settlement facility licences when providing services relating to eligible stablecoins or wrapped tokens.

ASIC Corporations (Stablecoin and Wrapped Token) Instrument 2025/867

The ASIC Corporations (Stablecoin and Wrapped Token) Instrument 2025/867 exempts distributors from the requirement to hold an:

  • AFS Licence to provide financial services,
  • Australian market licence to operate a financial market, and
  • Australian CS facility licence to operate a clearing and settlement facility,

in relation to eligible stablecoins and eligible wrapped tokens, by exempting them from the obligations in relevant parts of the Corporations Act 2001, subject to the condition set out in the instrument.

To rely on the relief, distributors must comply with various requirements and conditions in relation to the exemptions, including one which requires them to make available to retail clients a Product Disclosure Statement for the eligible stablecoin where one has been prepared by an eligible stablecoin issuer and for the eligible wrapped token where one has been prepared by an eligible wrapped token issuer.

In addition, the instrument provides targeted relief to issuers of eligible stablecoins and eligible wrapped tokens from transaction reporting requirements (subsection 1017F(2)) where the issuer is not a party to the transaction. Targeted relief is also provided to distributors of eligible wrapped tokens from needing to prepare disclosure documents as a result of being taken to be the issuer of the eligible wrapped token because of s761E(5).

ASIC Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2025/871

ASIC has also granted relief to allow providers to hold digital assets that are financial products in omnibus accounts, subject to appropriate record-keeping arrangements and reconciliation procedures. The ASIC Corporations (Amendment) Instrument 2025/871 (Amending Instrument) provides this relief by amending the ASIC Corporations (Custody Standards for Providers of Custodial and Depository Services) Instrument 2024/17 (Principal Instrument). The Amending Instrument includes digital assets, in the exceptions to the custody of certain types of financial products in omnibus accounts under notional paragraph 912AAC(5)(b) of the Principal Instrument and defines ‘digital asset’ in notional subsection 912AAC(16) of the Principal Instrument.