Trive Lost Australia License after Ceasing Onboarding New CFD Traders a Year Ago

The Australian financial market regulator has cancelled the operational license of the local unit of Trive, a contracts for differences (CFD) issuer, for “no longer carrying on a financial services business” in the country.

No Business, No License

In its announcement today (Thursday), the Australian Securities and Exchange Commission (ASIC) highlighted that it may suspend or cancel the Australian Financial Services (AFS) license of any company if it ceases to carry out business activities.

Trive obtained its AFS license in July 2012, which was cancelled on 1 July 2026 after 14 years. The broker was initially known as ILQ Australia and later as Fairmarkets. It was rebranded as Trive after the global merger with GKFX.

In Australia, the broker ceased onboarding new clients in April 2025, which eventually led to its operations ceasing. The move came after the Aussie regulator assessed Trive and 51 other CFD brokers between October 2024 and December 2025 and identified serious deficiencies in some of their processes.

The broker, meanwhile, is also consolidating its business globally. It has already ceased operations in the United Kingdom under its Financial Conduct Authority license. In other regions, however, it has expanded, including in South Africa.

• Trive Financial Services UK Revenue Drops 74% amid Exit from the Region
• Broker’s Exit Suggests £1.3 Million Net Profit Is Insufficient for The UK CFD Market
• Trive South Africa Begins Onboarding CFD Clients in the Region

ASIC Gears Up to Tighten CFD Brokers

ASIC earlier announced that more than 38,000 local retail CFD traders received about AU$40 million (around US$27 million) in refunds following its sector-wide review. According to the regulator, more than half of the CFD brokers operating in the country were either offering “margin discounts” to retail clients or breaching other obligations.

Although Trive was part of that assessment, it remains unclear exactly which breaches the broker committed or whether it also returned money to traders.

The Aussie regulator highlighted that 68 per cent of retail CFD investors in Australia lost money in 2024, totalling more than AU$458 million (US$308.3 million), including AU$73 million (US$49.1 million) in fees.