ASIC Proposes Leverage Caps for Crypto-Settled Derivatives, Extends CFD Rules to 2037

Published October 12, 2026, 21:45 PKT. Based on ASIC’s media release 26-239MR and consultation paper CS 64, and reporting by Cointelegraph, crypto.news, LeapRate and Traders Union.

Australia’s securities regulator wants to bring crypto-settled derivatives under the same retail protections that already cap leverage on contracts for difference. On Monday, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission published media release 26-239MR and consultation paper CS 64, proposing to extend its contracts-for-difference (CFD) product intervention order to contracts settled by transferring digital assets, including contracts that track non-crypto assets but otherwise meet the criteria for a CFD.

The October 12 proposal

CFDs let traders bet on price movements without owning the underlying asset. Australia’s existing intervention order, which commenced on March 29, 2021, covers contracts settled in cash or by offsetting obligations between the parties. ASIC says that leaves a gap: products settled by transferring digital assets can expose retail investors to the same risks while falling outside the order. The draft would add those contracts to the definition. ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland said the proposed updates ensure protections apply consistently, regardless of whether a CFD is settled by cash, set-off or digital assets. The draft would also replace the term “cryptoasset” with “digital asset” throughout the order. Certain crypto futures and options with fixed expiration dates would remain outside the CFD rules, according to Cointelegraph.

Ten more years, to 2037

The proposal does not only close the settlement gap. ASIC also wants to keep its CFD intervention order in force for another 10 years, to 2037, subject to ministerial approval, according to LeapRate. The current order expires on May 23, 2027, and ASIC’s supervision priorities had already signaled that the order would lapse unless it was remade and consulted on in 2026. The order carries four protections: leverage limits, standardized margin close-out arrangements, negative balance protection that limits losses to the funds in a client’s trading account, and a ban on certain inducements. The draft confirms that initial margin applies separately to every CFD, with no netting of opposing positions.

The $458 million case for keeping the rules

ASIC points to the order’s record to justify the renewal. The regulator reports that the order reduced retail net client losses 91% to $33 million per quarter and cut margin close-outs by 87%, according to Traders Union. But the underlying market remains brutal: 68% of retail traders recorded net losses totaling more than $458 million in 2023-24, including $73 million in fees. Crypto.news reports that ASIC is seeking a 10-year renewal of the protections on the back of those figures. The regulator is accepting feedback until 5pm AEDT on November 9, 2026.

Part of a wider Australian build-out

The CFD proposal lands as Australia assembles a broader crypto regime. Legislation passed in April brings crypto exchanges and tokenized custody platforms under the financial services licensing framework, with the new regime taking effect on April 9, 2027. ASIC also required crypto firms relying on temporary enforcement relief under existing financial services law to apply for licenses by September 30, or seek changes to their existing licenses. The crypto-settled CFD gap is being closed ahead of that 2027 licensing regime, rather than after it.

This article is news reporting and is not investment advice.

Sources

• ASIC’s media release 26-239MR and consultation paper CS 64, primary source for the October 12, 2026 proposal: crypto-settled contracts added to the CFD definition, the 10-year extension to 2037 subject to ministerial approval, the November 9, 2026 feedback deadline, the $458 million loss figures, and the digital-asset terminology change
• Cointelegraph, secondary source confirming the October 12 proposal, the fixed-expiry crypto futures and options carve-out, and the April 9, 2027 licensing regime date
• crypto.news, secondary source for the $458 million in CFD trader losses, the margin close-out and netting clarifications, and the feedback timeline
• LeapRate, secondary source for the 10-year extension to 2037, the May 23, 2027 expiry of the current order, and the Commissioner Kirkland statement
• Traders Union, secondary source for the 91% loss reduction and 87% close-out reduction figures, the 5pm AEDT deadline, and the retail loss data