Crypto lender Helio Lending fined for false licensing claims

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) secured a good-behaviour bond (without conviction) against crypto lender Helio Lending for false statements about possessing a licence.

The company signed a good-behaviour bond of AUD 15,000 (about USD 9,600) for a 12-month period.

ASIC said that in August 2019 Helio, in a news article on its website, falsely claimed it held a credit licence ACL 391330. The company was neither the holder nor a representative of the ACL owner.

At the time, Helio offered consumers loans secured by cryptocurrencies.

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\”We expect that legal and natural persons will provide accurate information to their users and potential clients. Helio falsely claimed that it held an Australian credit licence, misleading customers,\” said ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court.

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The company pleaded guilty, which was noted in sentencing. The second count related to the content of the Helio website article from February 2019 was withdrawn by the regulator.

The matter was before the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions.

As reported, ASIC filed a lawsuit against the eToro platform over a ‘high-risk’ product that allows speculation, including on cryptocurrencies.