ASIC Cancels Licence of CFD Issuer Trive

Licence Timeline and Corporate History

Trive Financial Services Australia originally operated as ILQ Australia, rebranded to Fairmarkets, then folded into the Trive umbrella following a global merger with GKFX. It held its AFS licence since July 2012. New client onboarding in Australia shut down in April 2025; operations wound down from there. ASIC's formal cancellation took effect 1 July 2026, citing the standard trigger — no active financial services business being conducted under the licence.

Globally, the picture is mixed. The broker already exited the UK market, surrendering its FCA authorisation. South Africa remains an active jurisdiction. Whether Australian client funds were fully closed out before the licence lapsed is not specified in available reporting.

Sector-Wide Crackdown: What the Numbers Show

ASIC assessed Trive alongside 51 other CFD issuers between October 2024 and December 2025. The regulator reported "serious deficiencies" in some operators' processes. Over half of assessed brokers were found offering margin discounts to retail clients or breaching other obligations.

The refund data is significant: more than 38,000 Australian retail CFD traders received approximately AU$40 million (~US$27 million) in remediation payments following the review. Whether Trive contributed to that pool remains unconfirmed.

Aggregate loss figures for 2024: 68% of retail CFD investors in Australia lost money, with total losses exceeding AU$458 million (~US$308 million), inclusive of AU$73 million (~US$49 million) in fees. These are ASIC's own numbers, not broker-reported.

Action Items for Affected Traders

Check your current broker's jurisdiction and licence status. If you held a Trive Australia account, verify fund withdrawal status and confirm which entity holds your open positions, if any. Cross-reference any broker's AFS licence number against ASIC's professional register — the entry for a cancelled licence will show the effective date.

For platform comparison purposes, the Trive exit underscores a recurring pattern: multi-jurisdictional brokers can consolidate or withdraw from specific markets without warning. Evaluate whether your broker's primary regulatory entity matches your account jurisdiction. An offshore entity under a different regulator is a different risk profile — full stop.