Case summary
What happened
Web3 Ventures Pty Ltd, trading as Block Earner, offered USD Earner, Gold Earner and Crypto Earner products under which customers transferred rights and title to cryptocurrency and received fixed returns. Block Earner ceased offering Earner on 16 November 2022 after ASIC raised concerns and ASIC commenced civil proceedings on 23 November. The Federal Court found in 2024 that Earner required licensing, the Full Federal Court reversed that conclusion in 2025, and the High Court unanimously restored the licensing finding in June 2026. The product had already ended and the 2024 penalty judgment recorded that all cryptocurrency lent through Earner was returned to users within weeks of discontinuation. Block Earner's separate Access product and continuing business are outside this record.
Customer result
Customer outcome
Full repayment
The Federal Court penalty judgment records that all cryptocurrency lent through Earner was returned to users within weeks of discontinuation. This outcome applies only to Earner and not to Block Earner's separate Access product or current services. No exact universal completion date was identified.
- Estimated recovery
- All cryptocurrency lent under the Earner product was returned to users in full after discontinuation.
- Repayment started
- —
- Repayment completed
- —
- Confidence
- High
Asset treatment
Terms risk
Platform-owned
Platform-owned classification follows the product terms described in ASIC's amended concise statement. It applies only to Earner and not to the separate Access product.
- Affected product
- USD Earner, Gold Earner and Crypto Earner
- Confidence
- High
Earner customers transferred all rights and title in their cryptocurrency to Block Earner, which could use and lend the assets at its sole discretion while owing a contractual return.
Source: ASIC amended concise statement describing Earner terms
Known unknowns
Uncertainty
The product end date is the documented date on which Block Earner ceased offering Earner. Litigation over penalty relief continued after the High Court liability decision and is not treated as a customer-outcome issue. This record does not classify Block Earner's separate Access product or current services as ended.
Chronology
Historical record
Block Earner launches Earner
Block Earner began offering fixed-yield USD Earner, Gold Earner and Crypto Earner products to Australian consumers.
The exact commencement date is recorded in ASIC's amended concise statement and later judgments.
Block Earner ceases offering Earner
Block Earner stopped offering and marketing the fixed-yield Earner product after ASIC raised licensing concerns.
The separate Access product and current Block Earner services are outside this event.
ASIC commences civil proceedings
ASIC sued Web3 Ventures Pty Ltd alleging unlicensed financial services and operation of an unregistered managed investment scheme in relation to Earner and other products.
The proceeding addressed Earner and the separate Access product; this record follows only the Earner findings.
Federal Court finds Earner required licensing
The Federal Court found that Earner was a financial product, that Block Earner provided unlicensed financial services and that the product operated as an unregistered managed investment scheme.
The Court rejected ASIC's equivalent case against the separate Access product.
Federal Court grants penalty relief
The Federal Court relieved Block Earner from liability to pay a pecuniary penalty after finding that it acted honestly in an uncertain regulatory environment.
The contravention declarations remained; the ruling concerned penalty relief and costs.
Full Federal Court reverses licensing finding
The Full Federal Court allowed Block Earner's cross-appeal and held that Earner was not a financial product requiring a financial services licence.
This ruling was later overturned by the High Court.
High Court unanimously rules Earner was a financial product
The High Court of Australia unanimously held that Earner was a facility through which users made a financial investment and a derivative, and that Block Earner required an Australian financial services licence.
The matter was remitted for determination of ASIC's penalty appeal.
Source record
Evidence dossier
Filter by claim, reliability, source type, and whether evidence is linked to a specific event.
customer outcome
2 sourcesPenalty judgment in ASIC v Web3 Ventures
Federal Court of Australia · 2024-06-04
Records the discontinuation of Earner and that all cryptocurrency lent under the product was returned to users within weeks.
Penalty judgment in ASIC v Web3 Ventures
Federal Court of Australia · 2024-06-04
Primary judgment supporting both penalty relief and the full return of cryptocurrency lent under Earner.
end date
1 sourcesASIC amended concise statement against Web3 Ventures
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2023-04-04
Records that Block Earner ceased offering Earner on 16 November 2022.
Entity
1 sourcesASIC successful in High Court Block Earner appeal
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2026-06-17
Summarizes Earner's operating period, fixed-return design and final High Court classification.
Event
7 sourcesASIC sues Block Earner for unlicensed conduct
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2022-11-23
Official announcement of ASIC's civil penalty proceedings concerning Earner and the separate Access product.
ASIC amended concise statement against Web3 Ventures
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2023-04-04
Pleading describing the alleged unlicensed financial services and managed-investment-scheme conduct.
Court finds Block Earner needed financial services licence
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2024-02-09
Official summary of the Federal Court liability findings concerning Earner.
Court relieves Block Earner from liability to pay a penalty
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2024-06-04
Official summary of the penalty-relief decision and continuing declarations of contravention.
Full Federal Court finds Block Earner did not engage in unlicensed conduct
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2025-04-22
Official summary of the Full Federal Court decision later overturned by the High Court.
ASIC successful in High Court Block Earner appeal
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2026-06-17
Official summary of the unanimous High Court ruling and remittal of the penalty appeal.
Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Web3 Ventures Pty Ltd
High Court of Australia · 2026-06-17
Official judgment page for [2026] HCA 21.
launch date
1 sourcesASIC amended concise statement against Web3 Ventures
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2023-04-04
Records that Block Earner began offering Earner on 17 March 2022 and describes the product structure.
terms risk
1 sourcesASIC amended concise statement describing Earner terms
Australian Securities and Investments Commission · 2023-04-04
Describes customer transfer of all rights and title to Block Earner and Block Earner's discretion to use and lend the assets.
url history
1 sourcesBlock Earner website archive captures
Internet Archive
Preserves the historical Block Earner product surface while the current business continues separately.
No evidence records match the current filters.
Comparative records