Australian fintech giant Finder.com has won a landmark case against the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), ending a nearly three-year legal battle over its crypto yield product, Finder Earn. The Federal Court confirmed that Finder Earn was not a financial product under Australian law, upholding a previous judgment in March that cleared the company of wrongdoing.

The court ruling, delivered by Justices Stewart, Cheeseman, and Meagher, solidifies Finder’s compliance with consumer finance regulations. The decision also marks the first time an Australian court has ruled on the legal definition of a “debenture” in the context of cryptocurrency products.

Finder Earn operated from February to November 2022, offering users a 4% to 6% annual return for converting Australian dollars to stablecoins and depositing them into Finder Wallet. The company had already returned over 500,000 TrueAUD (about $336,000) to users after winding down the product.

Fred Schebesta, founder of Finder.com, hailed the verdict as a major win for innovation in Australia’s fintech sector. “This is a win not just for Finder, but for fintech in Australia,” he said. Schebesta emphasized the importance of regulated access to new investment opportunities such as staking, NFTs, and yield products. He revealed that Finder had consulted ASIC throughout the product’s development.

Hinting at future plans, Schebesta teased a major new project in the works. “I have something massive I’ve been working on that will build upon this win,” he said.

This decision could serve as a pivotal precedent for how crypto-related products are regulated in Australia and beyond.